Discovering Hogwarts
by WishingHeart
Summary: Alice Cullen is a new student attending Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry for the seventh and final year. However, Head Boy Jasper Hale is forced to be her guide, and neither of them are happy with that little arrangement - are they?
1. Chocolate Chip Cookies

**_Discovering Hogwarts- Chapter One: Chocolate Chip Cookies_**

Disclaimer: The Harry Potter universe belongs to the amazing JK Rowling, and the Twilight universe belongs to Stephenie Meyer!

_**Summary**: Alice Cullen is a new student attending Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry for the seventh and final year. However, Head Boy Jasper Hale is forced to be her guide, and neither of them are happy with that little arrangement-- are they? _

--

Alice Cullen jumped angrily on her bed, glaring at the innocent ceiling as her head hit the pillow. She gazed at the sparkling stars that her mother had charmed onto the enchanted ceiling, desperately hoping that they would actually grant wishes so she wouldn't have to move.

To England.

She heard a knock and sighed as she saw her mum come in. Her wand was extended to keep a tray of chocolate chip cookies and Butterbeer floating in the air behind her.

"Oh, honey, don't be so sad," her mum said gently as she saw her daughter's gloomy expression and sat down on the bed.

"It's just- do I have to go to Hogwarts? I want to stay at Beauxbatons. It's the school I went to for six years," Alice said as she grabbed a cookie and a glass of Butterbeer.

Although Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry was the best magical school in the world, it was in England, so Alice did not attend it. Instead, because she lived in France, she went to Beauxbatons Academy of Magic. But now, that was all going to change.

"I know, sweetie, but your father has to move to England for his job. And, although he loves his work, you know he would never go anywhere without being close to you," Esme replied as she tucked her caramel-colored hair behind her ear. Alice's dad was the Minister of Magic of France, and some government issues had forced him to go to England.

Alice munched thoughtfully on her cookie as Esme smiled fondly at her daughter, patting her silky black hair, which was cut into unnatural spikes. Esme thought it was adorable.

"Aww, mum!" Alice whined. No one except for her parents could get away with touching her hair.

"What did you do now, Alice?" Alice's dad, Carlisle, asked jokingly as he walked into the room, stealing a cookie in the process.

"Hello, dear," Esme laughed and kissed her husband.

"Daddy!" Alice exclaimed with a huge grin. She was excited to see her dad as that wasn't always possible since he often worked very late.

Carlisle chuckled and moved to kiss his daughter's forehead and rumpled up her hair. He sighed and sat down on her bed, wearing a concerned expression. "Honey, I know you really don't want to leave France, but-"

"It's all right, Daddy," Alice interrupted. "I think it would be cool to go to Hogwarts. Besides, Beauxbatons was getting a bit boring anyways," she smiled.

Alice had thought this over in the short period of time her dad had come, and decided that it wouldn't be too bad to move. And who knows? She might discover some fun yet!

"Well, good," Carlisle teased. "I told you she would want to come, Esme! You owe me five galleons."

Alice widened her eyes in disbelief and amusement. "You guys bet on me?" she pouted.

"It was just for fun, sweetie," Esme reassured her. "Which is why I will not pay you five galleons, Carlisle!"

"I knew it," Carlisle said dramatically, putting his head in his hands disappointedly. "You're still a sore loser."

"Excuse me?!" Esme gaped at him. "I – well, you know what? You're not allowed to have anymore cookies!" she informed him with a tone of finality.

"What!? Noooooo!" Carlisle yelled, devastated. He pulled out his wand and screamed, "Wingardium Leviosa!"

Quite suddenly, Esme was floating in midair.

"Carlisle Cullen! Put me down at once! Alice, tell your father to let me down this instance!" She laughed, brandishing her own wand. "Oh well, Carlisle, I hope you enjoy being tickled!"

"What are you talking about? You know I hate being tic-" He burst into uncontrollable laughter as a jet of silver light was shot at him from Esme's wand. "Esme-" laughter "I-" more laughter "no-" even more laughter "tickles!" Carlisle finished proudly, although he was still giggling quite happily.

Alice leaned against her pillow, searching for a comfortable spot as she watched her parents. She swore that they seemed more childish than her sometimes. She grinned as they continued fighting over the delicious chocolate chip cookies- the chocolate chip cookies that she was currently enjoying.

* * *

A/N: Hi everyone! Sorry the first chapter is so short, but I hope you enjoyed it. It's my first fanfic, so any help would be really appreciated! Thanks for reading and review please!!! :D


	2. King's Cross Station

**_Discovering Hogwarts- Chapter Two: King's Cross Station_**

**_--_**

"Alice? Sweetie, it's time to wake up! Today's the day you're going to Hogwarts!" Esme announced excitedly as she pulled open the soft curtains, letting the sunlight spill over her daughter's head.

However, this did nothing to wake her up. In fact, despite what Alice had told her parents about wanting to go to Hogwarts, upon hearing her mother tell her the plans for the day, she felt like doing nothing more than to lie in bed and sleep all day.

"Honestly, Alice! Get up and take a shower!" Esme observed her daughter thoughtfully. Apparently, she was still ignoring the world around her. "You know, you really should get up if you want to pick out some nice clothes to wear. There's not going to be enough time if you carry on like this." That did the trick. As soon as Alice heard the word 'clothes', she immediately jumped out of bed and rushed into the bathroom. Esme chuckled. She was all too aware of her daughter's love of fashion.

After about fifteen minutes in the shower, Alice appeared in her fluffy pink robe and slippers, prepared to pick out something nice to wear.

Arranged in a neat pile on top of the bed were the clothes that her mother thought would look cute on her. After selecting an outfit, she focused on getting dressed and fixing her hair.

Alice stood in front of the full- length mirror and inspected herself. She was wearing a navy vest and a white three-quarter length shirt with a gray camisole layered inside. This was paired with black skinny jeans, some white ballet flats, and a cream-colored scarf. She looked lovely.

Alice quickly exited her room and bounced down the stairs, heading into the kitchen.

"Morning, Mum! Morning, Dad!"

"Hey Alice," answered Carlisle over his morning newspaper and coffee.

"Oh, you look nice honey," Esme smiled as she ate her scrambled eggs.

Alice enthusiastically ate her breakfast, which consisted of one of her favorites: blueberry pancakes.

After finishing their meal, the Cullens loaded all of Alice's belongings- including her snowy white owl, Waffles- into the black Mercedes, and left home.

* * *

"Okay, so we have to get to King's Cross Station, in London; and have you on Platform 9 ¾ to board the Hogwarts Express by 11:00," Carlisle said.

"Oh, I hope I won't have to sit by myself the entire way there, that would be horrible," Alice mused.

"Of course not dear, I'm sure you'll meet plenty of new friends," Esme reassured her.

"Yes, and I talked to Headmaster Dumbledore too, he said that in order to try and make your move easier, he would assign the Head Boy to look after you. He's supposed to be there at the station," added Carlisle. Alice rolled her eyes. The 'Head Boy' sounded like a baby sitter to Alice.

"That- er- sounds… nice of him…" she said uncertainly. Her parents nodded their heads in agreement.

The rest of the car ride was very long, and passed by uneventfully. At first, Alice stared out the window, looking at the beautiful scenery rolling by. She began playing with the charm bracelet she had received from her parents for her 5th birthday and wondered what Hogwarts would be like. Eventually, she dozed off.

"Come on honey, it's time to wake up. We're almost here," Esme said. Yawning, Alice opened her eyes and stretched her arms.

"What, already?" Alice protested disappointedly.

"Oh, it'll be alright sweetie; you'll have a great time there." Carlisle said.

"Yeah," Alice said unenthusiastically.

Pulling into the parking lot of King's Cross Station and parked the car, Carlisle announced, "We're here!"

Carlisle's phone rang.

"Carlisle Cullen speaking," he answered. "What!? But the meeting isn't till 1:00! I have to take my daughter to school! No - yes. Fine, I understand," he hung up angrily.

"What's wrong, dear?" Esme asked.

"I've just been informed that the moved the meeting up to 11:15."

"What!?" she cried. "But, it takes at least thirty-five minutes to drive there!"

"I'm sorry, Alice, but you'll have to get on the train yourself. Your mother and I have to get to the meeting," Carlisle said unhappily.

"Oh, okay," Alice muttered. Spotting a cart, she hurriedly placed her belongings on it.

Alice hugged her parents. "I'll miss you guys so much."

"Oh, don't forget to write, honey," Esme reminded, tears forming in her eyes.

"We'll see you soon, sweetie," said Carlisle, "But, we better get going."

"Okay. Bye Mum. Bye Dad," Alice said, as she waved and set off.

She wheeled her cart into the station, earning odd looks from Muggles, or non- magical people. It was extremely crowded; and after walking around for a bit, Alice finally found herself staring at Platforms nine and ten, but 9 ¾ was nowhere to be found.

Confused, she pulled out her ticket to reexamine it. No, she wasn't mistaken. It clearly read _Platform 9 ¾_.

What was going on?

Alice walked around a little while longer, debating on whether or not she should ask the conductor about the mysterious platform. She was starting to panic now, and desperately paced in front of Platforms nine and ten.

Was this a joke? Did someone change her ticket without her knowledge? Was she going to be kidnapped by goblins now?!

Great, now she was going crazy.

How could her parents not have told her how to get on the train? Did they forget? Now, she was never going to get to Hogwarts! She was going to be left to starve at the miserable Muggle train station! Until she was forced to eat her owl, Waffles. Then they would lock her up in a mental assylum for feasting on owls!

Her brain was overreacting rather dramatically.

While Alice was making plans to avoid starvation and eating her owl, she caught a bit of the conversation the couple passing by was having.

"-always packed with Muggles!"

Alice spun around. The speaker was a tall, handsome boy, around her age, with messy bronze hair and green eyes. He was speaking to a very pretty brunette. Alice examined their cart; it contained a couple trunks and two owls.

_Owls?! _Alice thought. _Maybe…_

"You're always so impatient," the girl said.

"Come on, we have to get to Platform 9 ¾ before the train leaves," the boy smirked. _Platform 9 ¾!_ Alice screamed in her head. Without further ado, she pushed her cart towards the couple.

"Hi! Excuse me, I couldn't help but overhear you two talking about Platform 9 ¾?" she asked hopefully.

"That depends, are you a Muggle investigator in disguise, trying to discover our secrets? Because if so, we were most definitely not talking about Platform 9 ¾. " the boy replied amusedly as the girl smacked his arm.

Alice laughed, her worries subsiding. "Yeah, you see, I need to get to this 'hypothetical' magic school- let's call it Hogwarts- but, the thing is, I don't exactly know how to get on the platform."

The boy grinned. "Huh. That sure is an interesting name for a school."

The girl rolled her eyes. "Don't worry. We'll be more than glad to help you. I'm Bella Swan, and this is my boyfriend- who can be quite an idiot at times- Edward Masen." Edward pretended to seem offended.

"Pleased to meet you," she replied and shook their hands, "I'm Alice Cullen."

Bella gasped and looked at Edward, "She's the new girl from France."

Alice - the new girl from France, who was standing right there - internally cringed."Yeah, that's me."

Edward snickered. "Jasper's going to be in so much trouble."

_Who's Jasper?_

* * *

Jasper Hale hurriedly ran through King's Cross Station, dragging his trunk behind him and ignoring the annoying girls attempting to flirt with him. He narrowly dodged a man's luggage cart and bumped into another girl. He felt guilty, but at that moment, he didn't care.

He was late, which wasn't usually like him. He strongly regretted not leaving with his sister earlier; but his genius brain had decided that, ultimately, sleep was much more important.

Making matters worse, he was made Head Boy for their seventh year, and Head Boys were not supposed to be late.

At first, Jasper was really looking forward to it, until the fateful letter from Headmaster Dumbledore.

_Dear Mr. Jasper Hale,_

_I offer my congratulations again for being chosen as Head Boy! I am absolutely certain you will be great. However, I must inform you of your first duty. It is to assist a new student to our school, Alice Cullen. She has just transferred from Beauxbatons Academy of Magic in France, and will be starting her seventh year here. I trust that you will do your best to help her adjust to Hogwarts. Good luck! _

_Nitwit! Blubber! Oddment! Tweak,_

_Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore_

_P.S. You must meet her at King's Cross Station and accompany her aboard the Hogwarts Express on September the first. _

Suddenly, Head Boy didn't look so good to Jasper course, when he shared this with his best friends Edward Masen and Emmett McCarty, they expressed their 'sincere sympathy' by laughing at him.

And now, there he was, scrambling around that train station, late. There were Muggles everywhere, and Alice Cullen was nowhere to be seen.

Actually, now that he thought about it, Jasper didn't know what she looked like at all. How was he supposed to even find her? For all he knew, she could've been a giant. Unsure of what to do, Jasper decided to head off towards Platform 9 ¾. After all, there was a chance that the girl _had_ found her way there.

"Jasper! Hey!" The Jasper in question turned around to see a blonde girl and a boy with dark, curly hair- who looked like a weight lifter- waving at him. It was his sister, Rosalie, and her boyfriend who just happened to be his best friend, Emmett.

The pair walked over to him with their own luggage.

"What's up guys? Listen, I'm looking for this new girl from France- you know, the one I'm supposed to help?" Jasper said quickly.

For some unknown reason, Rosalie began laughing extremely loudly at that.

"What's so funny?" Jasper asked bewilderedly. She pointed behind him, and he turned around. All he saw was his other best friend, Edward, with his girlfriend, Bella, but he was at a loss to why that was so hysterical.

"You okay, Rose?" Emmett asked.

Rosalie rolled her eyes. "Yes. But, what I was referring to was that girl with them. I've seen her in _Witch Weekly_ and the_ Daily Prophet_ before. She's Alice Cullen."

* * *

A/N: Sorry these first couple chapters aren't too interesting. But it'll get better, I promise! Review please! I would really appreciate any comments or advice. Thanks! :D


	3. The Hogwarts Express

**_Discovering Hogwarts- Chapter Three: The Hogwarts Express_**

**_--_**

Although still curious about the mysterious Jasper person, Alice was determined not to be nosy. She was very excited over meeting Edward and Bella. They seemed really nice; although, they might need a change in their wardrobes, something that Alice would gladly help with. She had a feeling that they were going to get along just fine.

"So, I was wondering, how do you actually get to the train?" Alice asked as she scanned her surroundings and remembered her current dilemma.

Smiling, Bella replied, "Here, watch Edward." Alice immediately focused her eyes on him, scrutinizing his every move. She was afraid of missing anything.

"Oh, yeah," said Edward as Bella poked him. He wheeled his cart towards the barrier of between Platforms nine and ten, and casually leaned against it. Suddenly, he vanished.

Momentarily stunned, Alice gasped, "Awesome! So all I have to do is to go through the barrier?"

As Bella nodded, Alice gracefully danced towards the barrier with her trunk. She was a bit nervous.

Alice quickened her pace. She narrowly avoided people that were jostling her left and right. Scared, she involuntarily braced herself for the crash against the stone wall as she ran towards it. It was less than a foot away; so she closed her eyes, waiting for the crash to come. Her parents would be so mad at her when they found out that she had knowingly smashed into a brick pillar. She was going to get into so much trouble! They would kill her! Unless, she was already dead from the collision with the wall… Oh no! Ahh.. it was almost there! Still waiting for the crash… Still waiting…

It never came.

After a minute or so, Alice, deeming it to be safe, opened her eyes in amazement. The scene that greeted her was extraordinary. There was a scarlet steam engine waiting next to a platform packed with people. A sign that hung overhead said: _Hogwarts Express, eleven o'clock._ Alice glanced behind her and saw a fancy wrought- iron archway where the barrier had been. It had the words _Platform Nine and Three-Quarters_ on it.

Alice squealed and clapped her hands in delight. She had done it! She looked around and reexamined everything in further detail. Smoke from the engine was floating through the air, making it seem almost dreamlike. Owls hooted in cages all around her. She even saw some cats and a toad. After a thorough search through the crowd, Alice spotted Bella and Edward, and ran towards them, towing her cart behind her.

"That was amazing!" Alice exclaimed to the couple. They laughed and Bella suggested for them to go find a seat before the train was full.

As Alice walked down the train, she saw that many of the compartments were full. She saw many students dangling out of the windows to talk to their families. As they got more towards the center of the train, she even witnessed a fight almost breaking out over seats.

A pale boy with white- blonde hair hissed, "We want this compartment, Mudblood!" to a pretty girl with long, bushy, brown hair.

Alice could tell two boys- one with messy jet- black hair and glasses, and the other with flaming crimson hair and freckles- were about to defend the girl.

"What the bloody hell is your problem? How dare you call someone that?" Alice shouted impulsively. Suddenly, it became a lot quieter, as nearby people stopped their chatter to watch her.

The rude boy looked up to see who had told scolded him. Seeing Alice there, he smirked hideously, "My bad," and he winked at her and sauntered off. Two figures that could easily be mistaken for trolls trooped after him, shaking the entire train like an earthquake as they stomped by.

While she was disgusted, at least now she knew who she_ wasn't_ going to be friends with. She twirled around to look at the girl who was insulted.

_Idiotic Purebloods._

The girl was being comforted by the two boys that were ready to yell at the repulsive slime ball earlier.

"Are you okay?" Alice asked the girl. It was so stupid that people prejudiced others based on the amount of magical blood that had running through their veins.

The girl in question looked up and said, "Yeah, thanks for that by the way. I'm Hermione Granger, and these two" she indicated the two boys, "are Harry Potter and Ron Weasley."

Alice now knew why the dark- haired boy looked so familiar. He was Harry Potter! The Boy Who Lived! Harry Potter was the only known survivor of the Killing Curse, Avada Kedavra, and enemy of Voldemort, the most powerful and feared dark wizard of all time. Harry, however, had survived encounters with him numerous times. Under closer inspection, Alice saw the lightening bolt scar on his forehead, the only sign of his attempted murder by Voldemort when he was only a year old. But, sadly, his parents had been killed in the process. What's more, Voldemort had become more powerful and was slowly preparing to strike the Wizarding population again. Alice was quite frightened and had to repress a shudder before speaking again.

"Oh wow! It's wonderful to meet you guys!" Alice replied delightedly as the Harry and Ron waved, "I better be going then. Hope to see you guys soon!" She walked further down the train with Edward and Bella, who grinned at her.

"That Malfoy git is pure evil," Edward said.

As they walked down the train, people tossed Alice strange and curious looks. Some even yelled rude words at her. She, however, held her head up high and ignored them. But, deep down, Alice hoped that people wouldn't treat her like that at school. Finally, after much searching, they discovered an empty compartment.

"I call a window seat!" Alice exclaimed.

"Me too," added Bella. Alice first made sure to get Waffles- her owl- situated, and then loaded her trunk inside, with some help from Edward. After all the trunks were set, Edward sat next to Bella, opposite Alice.

* * *

Jasper caught a brief glimpse of Edward before he disappeared beyond the barrier. Soon after, with the encouragement of Bella, she saw Alice Cullen twirling gracefully towards the wall, vanishing when she would have hit it. Bella followed the girl through after she disappeared.

"C'mon let's go. It's almost eleven. Plus, I can't wait to get some food off the trolley!" Emmett announced. He and Rosalie crossed the barrier, impatiently dragging their carts behind them.

However, Jasper was still speculating what he saw. If that really was Alice Cullen, he decided that she was in good hands, so he joined Emmett and Rose through the barrier.

Platform nine and three quarters never ceased to amaze Jasper. He found it fascinating that such a huge and important way of transportation could be hidden from Muggles, right under their noses. He spotted Rose and Emmett near the scarlet steam engine, and joined them, completely forgetting about his obligation to find Alice Cullen.

They walked through the crowd, attempting to avoid any people - which was quite difficult for Emmett- and finally made it onto the train. Jasper noticed the same things he had been seeing for years: students hanging out their windows to get a last minute word into their families before the train pulled away, people fighting over seats; Hermione Granger's cat, Crookshanks, strolling along the aisle, expertly weaving through people's legs. He even spotted a toad escaping, with Neville Longbottom chasing after it.

"We have to get the last compartment!" Emmett said determinedly. This was only because the snack trolley made its way from the back to the front, and Emmett usually emptied out the entire cart.

Laughing, they made their way through to the last compartment, and settled in. They tucked the trunks in the corner and put their owls away- Jasper's was called Snowball, and Emmett's was Chocfrog (a combination of one of his favorite sweets, Chocolate Frogs). Rosalie owned a pink cat- the pink was the result of Emmett's "extraordinary" display of Charms in their third year, and they became too fond of it to change the color back- named Strawberry. She and Emmett then sat down.

The whistle sounded, signaling their departure.

"Aren't you joining us?" Rose inquired, noticing her brother was still standing.

Jasper shook his head, "Nah, I have to go to the Head's Compartment to meet the Head Girl and talk to the Prefects."

"Lucky you. Who do you think the Head Girl is gonna be? It better not be Pansy Parkinson." she said, referring to the evil Slytherin Prefect.

Jasper shuddered. The mere thought was enough to give anyone nightmares.

Emmett snorted, "I don't think she's got enough brains to be Head Girl. No amount of money could possibly bribe Dumbledore into giving it to her. At least, I hope not. But, maybe she scared him into it with her looks?" he laughed loudly.

"Thanks for the encouragement, mate," Jasper remarked sarcastically .

"Good luck Jazz!" yelled Rose as he exited the compartment and headed towards the Head's Compartment at the very front of the train. It was going to be a long walk.

As he continued his stroll, several students poked their heads out and congratulated on obtaining the Head Boy position. To Jasper's horror and annoyance, some girls even giggled at him in what they thought was an alluring way, he supposed. The Jasper that they were referring to certainly did not wish to be that Jasper at that moment, and unconsciously quickened his pace, almost sprinting down the corridor, causing more people to gawk at him. However, he still heard some girls whispering disappointedly at their failed attempts to catch his attention.

While making his way down to the Head's Compartment, Jasper contemplated on his life. As the realization of it being his last and final year at Hogwarts dawned upon him, he wondered what the future would be like. After all, he would be on his own after his schooling was completed. All summer long, he had been speculating this, hoping his brain would suddenly and miraculously propose an ingenious idea for his future. The thought had constantly haunted him. However, this proved to be a failed plan. His brain was clearly on vacation, and did not offer him any ideas at all. Although he certainly wished to be successful like his father, he had not considered any career choices whatsoever.

Maybe he could follow in his dad's footsteps and become an Auror; or even a Quidditch player. Jasper was an excellent Quidditch player, being a Chaser on the Gryffindor team. But, playing Quidditch for the rest of his life- or until retirement- did not seem very fulfilling to him. Maybe he could become a teacher if he really needed to- although, reflecting on his school life, this was definitely not his favorite option. He could do what Professor Lupin did a few years ago.

However, the professor was a werewolf, and had difficulty finding a job elsewhere- because, after all, having WEREWOLF on one's resume is hardly beneficial- so the headmaster had offered him a position at Hogwarts. Did that mean Jasper had to become a werewolf too? No… that was too unoriginal. Perhaps a vampire then, or would that be too scary?

He sighed and pulled himself from his thoughts as he reached his destination. Looking down, Jasper saw that he had childishly crossed his fingers, but for what reason? Just to hope that the Head Girl wasn't someone too horrendous? Or to wish for a clear solution to his plans for the future? Jasper anxiously opened the door to the Head's Compartment and stepped inside. He glanced around and-

YES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! He had been spared the wrath of Dumbledore!

Thankfully, the new Head Girl was not Pansy Parkinson, but Hermione Granger. She was a very responsible and clever Gryffindor student, and a good friend of his.

"Hey Hermione. Congratulations on receiving Head Girl, we all knew you would," Jasper said.

Hermione smiled. "Congratulations yourself. Oh, before I forget, Harry asked me to tell you to talk to him later about something Quidditch related." Harry Potter was the captain of the Gryffindor Quidditch team, and was one of his friends as well.

"Thanks. You know, you really need to get an owl. We hardly heard from you over the summer!"

"Yeah, I know. But I was on holiday, remember? Besides, we have to get the Prefects meet-"

A tall, rather severe looking woman came in, interrupting her. She was wearing emerald- green robes and her hair was drawn into a professional bun; she sported a uniquely shaped pair of spectacles too.

"Oh, hello there Professor McGonagall," Jasper grinned. Professor McGonagall permitted a small smile at Jasper. Everyone knew he was her favorite student.

"Hi Professor," said Hermione.

"I just came by to drop off the passwords to the dormitories. I trust you are handling the Head duties well?" Professor McGonagall inquired.

Hermione nodded. Jasper was about to do the same when he remembered something. There was something he was supposed to do, wasn't there? Someone he was supposed to help? Yes, that seemed correct. But, who…?

OH! Alice Cullen. Crap! Ahh, this was great. Screwing up on his first day.

Professor McGonagall noticed Jasper's silent internal battle and asked, "Jasper?" He was the only student that she ever referred to by their first name, with the occasional exception of Harry. "Did you find Miss Cullen?"

Jasper's face held a look of extreme guilt, and responded apologetically, "No ma'am. It may have somehow slipped my mind."

Professor McGonagall sighed, "Jasper, it was your responsibility to make sure she was taken care of. It's your duty as Head Boy!"

"I know, Professor, I'm sorry. It won't happen again."

"See that it won't. I know you are usually a very responsible person, so I'll let you off with a warning. Be grateful that I didn't give you a detention! Now, I want you to search for Miss Cullen immediately after you meet with the Prefects. Am I clear?" she instructed firmly.

"Yes, ma'am," said Jasper. Professor McGonagall nodded and left the Head's Compartment.

Perfect, now Professor McGonagall was upset with his, and the term hadn't even begun yet. It was all Alice Cullen's fault, his brain concluded furiously. He motioned to Hermione and they set off the Prefect's Compartment.

The Prefects were all assembled. There were eight total, two from each of the Houses at Hogwarts: Gryffindor, Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff, and Slytherin. The Gryffindor Prefects were Bella Swan and Ron Weasley - who smiled at Hermione. The Prefects from Ravenclaw were Jacob Black and Luna Lovegood. Mike Newton and Jessica Stanley were the Prefects from Hufflepuff. Lastly, Draco Malfoy and Pansy Parkinson were the Prefects from Slytherin.

Observing Jasper's cold expression, Malfoy taunted, "Something wrong there, Hale?"

Jasper ignored the prick. With the help of Hermione, he addressed the entire group about the basics of being a Prefect.

After he was finished with his speech, Mike raised his hand and said, "Erm, I think you forgot to remind us to take our responsibilities seriously." He was evidently unaware of Jasper's rising temper and whispered loudly to Jessica Stanley, "Aren't I smart? I read the entire _Prefect Guide for Dummies_ Handbook by Gilderoy Lockhart last night!"

Jessica, however, wasn't paying any attention to Mike at all. Instead, she was busy batting her eyelashes at Jasper, which was a failed attempt.

Jasper fumed, "Yes, thank you _so_ much for correcting me Newton, what would we _ever_ do without you?" he said sarcastically, trying to control his temper. Mike, still oblivious, grinned smugly. He was clearly very proud of himself. Meanwhile, Jacob Black shoved his fist into his mouth, trying to contain his laughter.

Hermione quickly interjected and passed out the appropriate set of passwords for the different House dormitories to each Prefect.

"Right, now each Prefect must do rounds two nights a week. The sign-up sheet will be posted in the Prefects' Lounge after dinner for you to choose your times. Jasper and I have to do rounds every night, so feel free to talk to either of us if you have any problems with your schedule," Hermione explained as Jasper nodded.

"Okay, you're all free to go now," said Hermione. Everyone except for Ron- who was waiting for Hermione- quickly rushed out of the compartment.

It was time for Jasper to find Alice Cullen.

"Hi Jasper, are you alright?" asked Bella.

"Er, sure. Listen, do you happen to know where Alice Cullen is? I'm looking for her."

"Oh yeah. She's with Edward in our compartment, I think. Weren't you supposed to show her around?"

Jasper, who was fed up with everyone reminding him of his job, simply nodded. He decided that speaking might lead to some rather unkind outburst.

"Okay, follow me then," said Bella skeptically.

They finally made it to Edward's compartment.

Jasper opened the door and was met with the scene of Edward snoring. No Alice Cullen. "Bella, she's not here," he whispered.

"Huh? Oh, I don't know then…" she said, looking wistfully at Edward.

Jasper sighed, "That's fine. Thanks for trying to help. I'm gonna go look for her then."

"Oh, are you sure? We could always help," she offered a little reluctantly.

"Yeah, see you guys later," Jasper said. And with that, he walked off, in search of Alice.

* * *

Alice was staring outside the window after Bella left to attend her Prefect meeting. Soon after, Edward had fallen asleep, leaving her extremely bored.

She decided to explore the rest of the train, and lithely crept out of the compartment, careful not to wake Edward up.

She walked for a bit until she heard someone call her name. She whirled around. It came from one the compartments. Confused, she was about to ignore it and continue her walk when Harry stuck his head outside of a compartment.

"Hey Alice, bored?" he asked.

"Utterly and completely," Alice sighed.

Harry laughed, "Well, you're welcome to join us if you'd like."

"Ooh, sure! Thanks!" Alice replied eagerly and went into the compartment. She looked around, her eyes wandering over many wrappers of Chocolate Frogs, Cauldron Cakes, Pumpkin Pasties, and opened packages of Licorice Wands and Bertie Bott's Every Flavor Beans. However, something- or someone- seemed to be missing.

"Ron and Hermione are at the Prefect meeting," Harry answered Alice's unspoken question rather dejectedly, "But, we still have these guys," he said, indicating the other people inside.

Alice's eyes lit up at at the opportunity to make some more friends. "Hey everyone! I'm Alice Cullen! I'm new, having just transferred to Hogwarts!"

A girl with long, crimson colored hair and freckles- who somewhat resembled Ron Weasley- waved. "Nice to meet you Alice, I'm Ginny Weasley."

So they were siblings. Alice wished she had siblings. It would be so cool to have other people to share things and play with. She knew she would be the best sister ever if she had any siblings.

The next person was a girl with straggly, waist length, dirty blonde hair. She had protuberant eyes, making her look very surprised. She had her wand tucked behind her left ear, wore a necklace of Butterbeer caps, and was reading a magazine upside down. Alice was absolutely fascinated.

"Hello, I'm Luna Lovegood," she said dreamily.

"Pleased to meet you. That's a really cool necklace!" exclaimed Alice. Luna looked very happy and thanked her.

"So… who are you?" Alice asked the last round - faced boy who had kept silent the entire time.

"I- er- I'm nobody," he said at first. However, after a skeptical look from Ginny, he finally responded, "Neville Longbottom," stumbling over his words.

Alice smiled brightly, "And how are you, Neville?" Neville looked like he was about to faint. "Are you okay?" she asked.

"Ye- er- yeah, I'm… good," he managed a smile.

"Oh, okay," she said uncertainly.

"Looking forward to Hogwarts, Alice?" Harry asked.

Alice nodded her head, "Yeah, most of the people seem nice; except for that one Malfoy git and his trolls."

Harry, Luna, Ginny, and Neville burst into laughter.

"So, you've met Malfoy already? Bad luck. By the way, those two trolls are Crabbe and Goyle. They're not too sharp. Figures, since they're in Slytherin," said Ginny.

"Slytherin?" Alice asked.

"Oh, you don't know about Slytherins?" Ginny looked surprised.

Alice laughed, "Actually, I'm afraid I don't much about anything Hogwarts related."

Harry nodded sympathetically, "Well, Hogwarts is divided into four houses: Gryffindor, Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff, and Slytherin. Each student is sorted into a house and it becomes sort of like a home for them during their remaining years at the school. If you're good, you can earn points for your house; but, if you're bad, you can lose them. The house with the most points at the end of the year wins the House Cup. "

"But, most of the evil wizards and witches come from Slytherin, including Malfoy," added Ginny.

"Ahh… that explains so much," Alice laughed. Then she remembered, "What about me? What House would I go in?"

"Well, normally, first years get sorted into their Houses before the Welcoming Feast starts at the beginning of the year- or today- but, I don't know about you. Maybe, you'll be joining them?" Ginny pondered.

Before anyone could say anything else, a tall, red- headed, freckled boy walked in. Behind him, there was another boy that looked exactly the same as the first.

"Hey Ginny, Harry, Luna, Neville, and new-girl-that-we-do-not-know! Fancy buying some Weasley's Wizard Wheezes?"

Ginny explained, "Alice, meet my brothers, Fred and George. They're twins."

"Hi guys!" Alice giggled. "What are Weasley's Wizard Wheezes?"

Fred pretended to cry, while George, appearing offended, exclaimed, "What!? You haven't heard of Weasley's Wizard Wheezes before? They're _only _the best joke products in the world, created by yours truly. Ah, poor little girl…"he trailed off sadly and hung his head in shame.

Aww… I'm sorry. Truly," Alice apologized with an angelic puppy dog pout. However, after awhile, her eyes betrayed her by twinkling with amusement.

"Wha- no- it's… fine… no need to… apologize…" the twins attempted to say under the influence of Alice's puppy dog pout.

"Whoa… you're good," Fred grinned, "You can join us and become an honorary Weasley twin!"

Alice smiled, "Awesome! We'll be triplets!"

Harry and Ginny exchanged looks and laughed, while Luna ignored the outside world and read her magazine, _The Quibbler._ Neville just watched them silently. Fred and George soon left, and Ron and Hermione came back quickly after.

"So how was the meeting?" asked Harry.

"It was fine," replied Hermione.

"Jasper looked like he was about to chop Newton's head off! I wonder why he was so angry," said Ron. "Oh, hey Alice," he added.

"Hi," Alice smiled.

"Ooh! Alice, I think Jasper Hale's looking for you. He's supposed to make your transfer easier?" Hermione said unsurely.

"Oh, him! Well, I'm not going to go look for him. If he wants to find me, he can search by himself. Besides, he was the one who ignored me today. Because of him, I had to wander around King's Cross Station while people thought I was crazy because of my owl. I even started hallucinating about goblins kidnapping me and being forced to eat my owl to avoid starvation!" Alice shouted a little defensively.

"Ahh," Hermione grinned as Harry and Ron rolled around in their seats, laughing hysterically.

Right on cue, a tall guy burst through the door. He looked beyond gorgeous. He had golden honey colored hair, and looked like an actor or model, maybe even better. Alice gazed into his striking crystal blue eyes, and felt lost as he stared back uncertainly.

After a few moments he asked -while still staring at Alice, "Hey guys. I'm looking for an Alice Cullen, have you guys seen her around?"

Harry started chortling as Ron said, "Mate, you're staring at her!"

* * *

Jasper hastily looked through the compartments in search of Alice Cullen, looking in each one he came upon. People looked at him as if he were a lunatic. He once again reminded himself that this was all Alice Cullen's fault. However, when he opened up the door that led to Harry's compartment, he was met with a huge surprise.

His eyes fell upon a tiny girl. She probably didn't even reach five feet tall. Her shiny black hair was cropped into unnaturally artistic spikes all over her head. She also had amazing emerald colored eyes. He knew this because he was currently staring into those sparkling orbs.

Jasper finally remembered why he was here, and without breaking eye contact with the mysterious girl, he said, "Hey guys. I'm looking for an Alice Cullen, have you seen her around?"

He was aware of Harry bursting into a fit of laughter while Ron remarked, "Mate, you're staring at her!"

What?! That girl was Alice Cullen? The feeling of anger and frustration that had momentarily evaporated rushed back.

"You!? You're Alice Cullen?" Jasper yelled. Alice responded by nodding, confused. "You caused me so many problems today! And all because I was supposed to take care of you!" He accused.

* * *

Alice was quite puzzled as she nodded her head in confirmation of being Alice Cullen. When the strangely handsome boy started yelling at her, however, she put her foot down.

All traces of any affection- if only because of his looks- immediately vanished. "So, you're Jasper Hale, the Head Boy, I'm assuming?"

"Yes, very good Cullen. You finally got it through that thick head of yours," Jasper retorted. Harry, Ron, Hermione, Ginny, Luna, and Neville looked at each other nervously.

"What's your problem?" she demanded angrily.

"You!"

"Whatever, Hale," she said. "I was lucky I even got on the train! Where the bloody hell were you all day? I thought you were supposed to make sure I got here okay! If it weren't for Edward and Bella, I would probably still be at King's Cross Station! You better hope I don't tell my parents about this!" Although Alice wasn't normally this whiny or rude, Jasper just irritated her to no end.

"Oh, I'm so scared. You're lucky I'm forced to help you," he snapped, frustrated at being yelled at.

"Whatever," said Alice, ending the conversation. She turned around and peered out through the window. Even though it was getting dark, she could see mountains and forests under a twilight sky.

Jasper scoffed and said, "Sure. You guys better go get dressed though. We'll be arriving soon." After that, he left.

Everyone in the compartment, except for Luna, stared at Alice in shock. Alice, still angry and annoyed, said, "What!?"

Ginny was the first one to somewhat recover, "You… him…"

"That was odd, Jasper hardly ever gets that angry or yells at anyone," Luna mused calmly. Alice decided she didn't care about anything related to Jasper Hale, and returned her gaze out the window.

Suddenly, Hermione said, "Hey, can you guys get out? We girls have to change into our robes and uniform."

Harry, Ron, and Neville quickly made their way out, leaving the compartment to the girls. Alice was about to change, when she realized that her trunk was still in Bella and Edward's compartment. Notifying the girls, she left, saying good- bye to the boys as she walked outside.

After a short walk, she finally reached her destination, finding Edward outside the compartment. At Alice's questioning look, Edward laughed, "Bella kicked me out so she could get dressed."

"Oh," Alice giggled, "I have to change too." She knocked on the door, and Bella, who had heard their conversation, let her in.

"Hey Bella," she greeted.

"Hey. Oh, Jasper Hale was looking for you earlier. Did he catch you?" Bella asked.

Alice groaned, "Oh, don't even remind me of that prat!"

"I guess he did, then?"

"Sadly, and then he started yelling at me for supposedly messing up his day!"

"Ouch," Bella replied. "That doesn't sound like him."

"So I've been told."

The Hogwarts uniform was quite different from the Beauxbatons uniform, which required students to wear robes of blue and gray silk. This was quite impractical during the winter time. However, Hogwarts required students to wear a set of black robes. Beneath the robes, girls wore a white blouse and a dark pleated skirt, with a necktie in the colors of their House. However, Alice did not sport a necktie as she had not been sorted into a House yet.

When the girls finished, they let Edward back inside.

Right as they sat down, a voice echoed through the train: "We will be reaching Hogwarts in five minutes' time. Please leave your luggage on the train; it will be taken to the school separately. Also, Professor McGonagall would like me to inform Mr. Jasper Hale that he will be accompanying Miss Alice Cullen across the lake with the first years."

A buzz of conversation could be heard along the train. People were busy gossiping about Jasper and the mysterious Miss Alice Cullen. First years were chattering excitedly about going across the lake. Some suggested that they would fly over it and to the castle. Even though Alice was quite inquisitive as well, her irritation and anger overpowered her curiosity.

Edward and Bella observed Alice amusedly as she slid down to the floor, cursing her own bad luck to have to associate with Hale again.

"Come on Alice, let's go," Edward said.

They joined the crowd thronging the corridor as the train slowed to a stop. People pushed their way toward the doors and out onto a dark platform. Alice shivered in the chilly night air. Suddenly, a lamp appeared bobbing over the heads of the mass of students, illuminating the eerie darkness.

"Firs' years! Firs' years over here!" a voice shouted.

"Cullen! _Cullen!_" someone yelled loudly afterwards. Alice assumed it to be Hale. She said good-bye to Edward and Bella, and reluctantly moved toward to the direction of Hale's voice. Out of nowhere, a pair of strong arms grabbed her and began pulling her away, causing her to scream. Alice looked up to see Hale.

"Ugh, let go of me!" she shrieked. Hale, however, did not answer or let go. This forced Alice to be dragged along, stomping her feet the entire way, until they reached a gigantic man.

Alice stared at this man, dumbfounded. His face was almost completely hidden by a long, shaggy mane of hair and wild tangled beard.

The man beamed at her and Hale. "Alright there, Jasper? And you must be Miss Cullen!" he stated in a booming voice.

Alice smiled, "Yep! I'm Alice!"

"Call me Hagrid," the man chucked.

"Hey Hagrid, how's it going?" asked Jasper.

"Good, good. Ye excited abou' goin' across the lake for a second time? Not many people get the chance, ye know," he said. Then he turned to Alice, "Yeh'll love it. Lucky that you got to see the school this way, instead of goin' in the carriages like the older students."

"Yeah, it's great," Jasper laughed.

"Right, anymore firs' years? C'mon follow me! Mind yer step now! Firs' years follow me!" Hagrid shouted.

Jasper and Alice waited until all of the slipping and stumbling first years had passed, and tagged along behind them down a steep, narrow path. Despite Hagrid's warning, Alice nearly slipped on a rock in the dark- which was quite uncharacteristic of her- and would have fallen if Jasper had not caught her at the last moment. Although Alice was grateful, she glared at him and skipped along in front of him. Jasper angrily followed.

"Yeh'll get yer firs' sight of Hogwarts in a sec," Hagrid called over his shoulder, "just' round this bend here."

A loud "Ooooh!" could suddenly be heard.

The narrow path had opened up onto the edge of a great black lake. Magnificently perched atop a high mountain on the other side, its windows sparkling in the starry sky, was a vast castle with many towers: Hogwarts Castle. Alice stared at in awe, her jaw dropping open. Jasper watched her, amused.

Pointing to a fleet of little boats sitting in the water by the shore, Hagrid called, "No more'n four to a boat!"

Jasper pulled Alice to a boat, and stepped inside. Grudgingly, she followed.

"Everyone in?" shouted Hagrid. He had a boat all to himself. "Right then- FORWARD!"

At his command, the fleet of boats moved off all at once, gliding across the lake, which seemed as smooth as glass. "Heads down!" yelled Hagrid as the boats reached the cliff which the castle stood upon. Alice, who didn't need to bend her head down, looked over and smirked at Jasper, who narrowed his eyes at her. The little boats brought them through a curtain of ivy that hid a wide opening in the cliff face. They were carried along a dark tunnel, which seemed to lead right underneath the castle, until they reached an underground harbor, where they clambered out onto rocks and pebbles.

After Hagrid checked the boats, they climbed up a passageway in the rock after Hagrid's lamp. Finally, they came out onto smooth, damp grass right in the shadow of the castle. They walked up a flight of stone steps, stopping in front of a great, oak door. Then, Hagrid raised his humongous fist and knocked on the castle door three times.

* * *

A/N: Review please! Any advice would be much appreciated. Thanks! :)


	4. The Welcoming Feast

**_Discovering Hogwarts- Chapter Four: The Welcoming Feast_**

**_--_**

Alice jumped up and down in excited anticipation, her gaze intently fixed upon the great doors, as Jasper gave an impatient sigh. Suddenly, the doors swung open, revealing a tall witch in emerald- green robes.

"The firs' years and," indicating to Alice and Jasper, "these two, Professor McGonagall," said Hagrid.

"Thank you, Hagrid. I will take them from here."

She opened the door to its full extent, divulging the amazing entrance hall. Alice's eyes widened. It was huge! It could easily fit an entire house in it; and it was her dream to someday have a closet this big. The stone walls were lit with flaming torches. As Alice looked up, she found that she couldn't see a ceiling at all; it seemed to reach to the stars. There was also a magnificent marble staircase facing them that led to the upper floors.

Jasper's mouth stretched into a wide grin as he watched the first years-and Alice- stare in awe at the beginnings of the castle.

They followed Professor McGonagall across the stone floor. Hundreds of voices could be heard from a doorway to the right, where the rest of the school was at. However, Professor McGonagall showed them to a small, empty chamber off the hall instead. After they had crowded in- the first years looking rather uncomfortable with the closeness of their peers- Professor McGonagall began to speak.

"Welcome to Hogwarts," she said. "The start-of-term banquet will begin shortly, but before you take your seats in the Great Hall, you will be sorted into your houses. The Sorting is a very important ceremony, because, while you are here, your house will be something like your family within Hogwarts. You will have classes will the rest of your house, sleep in your house dormitory, and spend free time in your house common room.

"The four houses are called Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, and Slytherin. Each house has its own noble history and each has produced outstanding wizards and witches. While you are at Hogwarts, your triumphs will earn you points, while any rule breaking will lose house points. At the end of the year, the house with the most points is awarded the house cup, a great honor. I hope each of you will be a credit to whichever house becomes yours.

"The Sorting Ceremony will take place in a few minutes in front of the rest of the school. I suggest you all smarten yourselves up as much as you can while you are waiting. I shall return when we are ready for you," said Professor McGonagall. "Oh, do help them please, Jasper?" she added.

Seeing as Harry and Ginny had already explained much of this, Alice was only half paying attention. She was anxious for the sorting; desperately hoping that she wouldn't end up in Slytherin. If she were forced to see Malfoy again, she thought there was a good chance that she might just die.

Jasper, on the other hand, wasn't paying any attention at all, because he was already living through everything Professor McGonagall had said for the past six years. So, when all of the first years turned to him with nervous and expecting looks, he was at a loss as to what they wanted.

"You're supposed to make sure they- we- look presentable, dearest Head Boy," Alice whispered smugly.

Jasper glared at her and turned to the waiting first years and withdrew his wand. He muttered a spell- maybe showing off just a little- and with a swish and a gold spark that shot out from the wand-tip, the first years all looked much nicer. Some students' hair were combed and flattened out, a smudge on a little boy's nose disappeared, and another boy's cloak was unhooked from his ear. After a quick once-over, satisfied with his work, Jasper grinned at them and turned around, ignoring Alice's glower.

The first years stared at him silently with admiration, their jaws wide open; some were a little frightened at the display of magic, whereas some were in awe. Eventually, whispers began again. Many were frantically discussing the method of sorting. A little boy even suggested that they had to take a test that involved various methods of illegal torture invented by the goblins. Jasper chuckled and glanced around for Alice. He saw her lying flat on the floor, trying to see through the crack under the door.

"Worried?" he asked.

Alice jumped up, "Of course not!" Eying his doubtful look, she added, "Maybe, just a little. I just hope I'm not in Slytherin!" she groaned.

He laughed, "Oh, I don't think they would be _that_ harsh on you."

At that moment, the Hogwarts ghosts decided to make an appearance. About twenty of them streamed through the back wall. They were pearly-white and slightly transparent, and glided across the room without even a glance at the students.

"Move along, the Sorting Ceremony's about to start," Professor McGonagall said sharply. "Come, form a line and follow me."

Jasper was about to follow the first years through the double doors of the Great Hall, when he noticed that Alice was frozen, standing in front of the door.

"Cullen!" he yelled. She snapped around, facing him. "Not scared, are we?" Alice just narrowed her bright emerald eyes at him, while he motioned toward the doors, "Ladies first," he smirked. She reluctantly dragged herself behind the train of first years, still worried, followed by Jasper.

Alice gasped, and felt her eyes widen. She had never seen anything so spectacular. The Great Hall was lit by thousands and thousands of candles floating in midair over four long tables, where the rest of the student body was sitting. On top of the tables were glittering golden plates and goblets. There was also another long table where the teachers and staff sat at the top of the hall.

Alice gazed up at the ceiling; she saw that it was bewitched to look like the sky outside. She found it quite hard to believe there was even a ceiling at all. _Wow, amazing. It's so much better than Beauxbatons, _she thought. As, Professor McGonagall led the train to a halt in front of the staff table, facing the students; Jasper leaned over Alice, as if reading her thoughts, and whispered, "Better than Beauxbatons?"

Alice twisted her head around, shocked to see his face so close, and retorted slightly breathlessly, "Yes, everything but the Head Boy." As she glanced around, she couldn't help but wonder why so many girls were shooting her deadly looks. Shrugging it off, she turned her attention back to Professor McGonagall.

Professor McGonagall placed a four-legged stool in front of them, with a pointed wizard's hat on top of it. Jasper smiled as he watched the first years frantically staring at the hat, trying to guess at what they would be required to do. All of a sudden, the hat twitched; a rip appeared near the brim and open wide like a mouth, and it began to sing:

"_Oh, you may not think I'm pretty,_

_But don't judge on what you see,_

_I'll eat myself if you can find_

_A smarter hat than me._

_You can keep your bowlers black,_

_Your top hats sleek and tall,_

_For I'm the Hogwarts Sorting Hat_

_And I can cap them all._

_There's nothing hidden in your head_

_The Sorting Hat can't see,_

_So try me on and I will tell you_

_Where you ought to be._

_You might belong in Gryffindor,_

_Where dwell the brave at heart,_

_Their daring, nerve and chivalry_

_Set Gryffindors apart._

_You might belong in Hufflepuff,_

_Where they are just and loyal,_

_Those patient Hufflepuffs are true_

_And unafraid of toil._

_Or yet in wise old Ravenclaw,_

_If you've a ready mind,_

_Where those of wit and learning,_

_Will always find their kind._

_Or perhaps in Slytherin_

_You'll make your real friends,_

_Those cunning folk use any means_

_To achieve their ends._

_So put me on! Don't be afraid!_

_And don't get in a flap!_

_You're in safe hands (though I have none)_

_For I'm a Thinking Cap!"_

A burst of applause rang through the entire hall as the hat finished its song. After it bowed to each of the tables, it became still once again. However, it was quite clear that the first years- and Alice- became much more relaxed once they discovered no torture was involved in the sorting.

Alice glanced around the tables, and saw Edward and Bella sitting together, giving her an encouraging smile, which she returned. Professor McGonagall now stepped forward holding a long roll of parchment.

"When I call your name, you will put on the hat and sit on the stool to be sorted," she explained.

After all of the first years were sorted and seated at the appropriate house tables, it was Alice's turn.

"Cullen, Alice!"

She gracefully pirouetted her way to the stool, put on the hat, and sat down. A moment later, it announced, "GRYFFINDOR!"

Her eyes flew open in surprise. She let out a breath that she hadn't known she was holding. Utterly relieved, she jumped up, took the hat off, and hugged it. "Thank you so much!" she yelled gleefully at it.

"Well… why… you're very welcome," the hat replied.

Alice skipped towards the Gryffindor Table, and sat down where Bella was waving at her. She and Edward, along with Harry, Ron, Hermione, and many others congratulated her. She even heard the Weasley twins shout, "Yes! Our triplet has arrived!" This earned them many strange looks, but they just grinned at Alice, who smiled back.

Meanwhile, Jasper was still staring at the spot where Alice had vacated. He seemed to be deep in thought about something.

"Mr. Hale," called Dumbledore. "Do you wish to be sorted too?" he asked with an amused chuckle.

Jasper looked at him, stunned for a moment, and replied, "As much fun as it would be, I couldn't possibly leave my fellow Gryffindors," he grinned.

"Oh, very well, then," Dumbledore said with a twinkle in his eye.

As Jasper went to take a seat at the Gryffindor table, next to Emmett, a girl from the Hufflepuff table yelled, "Well, I wanna be in Gryffindor too, then!"

"Er, yes. Well, the Sorting Hat is tired now, very sorry," Dumbledore answered, bewildered. But, they could have sworn he muttered under his breath, "Kids these days."

He stood up and beamed at the students, and spread his arms wide open. It seemed as if nothing could have made him happier than to see them all there.

"Welcome to a new year at Hogwarts! Before we begin out banquet, I would like to say a few words. And here they are: Nitwit! Blubber! Oddment! Tweak! Thank you!

Everyone clapped and cheered as he sat back down. Suddenly, the dishes on the tables became filled with an assortment of food.

"Alice, I'd like you to meet Emmett, one of my best friends, and his girlfriend- who is also Jasper's sister, Rosalie," said Edward while they were eating. Emmett was a big, muscular guy with dark curly hair; and although his build looked menacing, he was extremely fun and kind. Rosalie, Jasper's twin sister, was absolutely stunning. She looked like a swimsuit model, with her blonde wavy hair cascading down her back.

"Hi guys!" Alice said in a chiming tone.

Over dinner, Rosalie and Alice immediately clicked with each other, discovering they had similar interests, such as fashion.

Emmett was clearly enjoying the food- maybe a little too much. When the last pork chop was left sitting on the plate, Alice and Emmett stared at each other intently. Then, suddenly, they both reached out to grab it. They began fighting over the poor pork chop, until Jasper stole it from both of them and ate it. This earned him a few choice words from Emmett, and a deadly glare from Alice.

After the delicious dinner, followed by some words from Dumbledore, the students were led by their Prefects up to the House dorms. Yawning, Alice marveled at the portraits that they passed. The tricky staircases always seemed to be moving too. Soon enough, she became quite drowsy, almost falling asleep during the trek.

At last, after climbing billions of stairs- or so it seemed- they reached Gryffindor Tower. Bella murmured the password, "Twilight," to a portrait of a very fat lady in a pink dress, and they were let in.

Seeing that they had arrived, Alice opened her eyes and felt a surge of excitement run through her, effectively lifting her from her previous groggy state.

She smiled, studying the common room. It looked very cozy, with armchairs and desks in front of a fireplace to keep warm.

Jasper looked at her strangely for a moment and walked up the left spiral staircase that led to the boys' dorms. After the girls said good night to their boyfriends, Alice followed Hermione, Rosalie and Bella to their dorms up the staircase on the right.

"You'll be sleeping in our room," Rosalie smiled.

"Cool," Alice replied as they entered the room.

She glanced around the room quickly; eying the four-poster beds draped with deep red, velvet curtains. There wasn't much else, and she made a mental note to decorate the room as soon as she got a chance.

"I'm guessing that's yours," Hermione said, pointing to a trunk in front of the bed by the window. As Alice bounced over, she discovered a red and gold silk necktie lying on her nightstand. She was officially a Gryffindor!

The girls quickly went to their trunks and unpacked, not bothering to chat because they were so tired. Then, they changed into their pajamas and jumped into bed.

"Good night girls," said Bella sleepily.

"Night."

"G'night."

"Mhmm… night."

"Sleep tight."

"Don't let the bed bugs bite!"

"Enough! Good night girls, go to sleep!" Rosalie screamed.

And with that, they fell sound asleep.

* * *

A/N: Thank you to everyone who reviewed and read this story! I love you guys! Anyways, review please!!! :D


	5. Horrendous Badgers

_**Discovering Hogwarts- Chapter Five: Horrendous Badgers**_

_**--**_

_BEEP!!!_

Alice groaned at the shrill noise that cut through the room, and groggily tried to open her eyes, shutting them immediately due to the bright sunlight streaming in from the open window.

"Up! Come on! Get up guys!"

Alice sat up, rubbing her eyes, and saw Hermione standing there holding a… megaphone? She grinned apologetically, "Sorry Alice, but Rosalie can never wake up, and Bella's not much better either."

Alice laughed and began helping Hermione. After various methods of trying to wake them up, Alice yelled, "Girls! You're boyfriends are being eaten by the Giant Squid as we speak!"

"Oh, whatever. They probably deserved it anyway. How would they ever learn if we interfered?" Rosalie snapped irritably.

Bella mumbled something unintelligibly in agreement and rolled over.

Hermione and Alice exchanged glances and burst out laughing. "Oh well, they can do what they want. I'm gonna go take a shower!" Alice announced. She grabbed her clothes and bag of necessities, and hopped into the bathroom.

After taking a long shower under the comfortable spray of hot water, Alice bounced into the dorm room with a clean uniform on.

Bella finally woke up, and gave her a weak smile, before dashing- rather clumsily- into the bathroom.

Alice stood in front of the mirror, gave her hair a quick brush, and went to pack her books. Bella came out of the bathroom as she was double checking that she had all of the necessary books.

"Roooooose… get up! We're about to leave!" Alice yelled into her ear.

Rosalie jumped up and shot her a glare- exactly like her brother's. She then proceeded to take a shower.

After everyone was ready, the girls headed down the stairs, led by Alice who was skipping gleefully- even though she had no clue as to where she was going.

They saw Edward, Emmett, Jasper, Harry, and Ron sprawled across the couches in the common room. A group of fifth year girls were gathered in a small group in the corner of the room behind them, whispering excitedly. Every once in a awhile, they would glance over to look at the boys. Emmett, Edward, and Ron were still half-asleep, while Jasper and Harry could be overheard discussing Quidditch.

"Good morning guys!" Alice chirped. "Hale," she nodded less enthusiastically.

"Morning," Jasper and Harry responded.

"What are you guys doing?" Hermione asked.

"These four," indicating to the other boys, "decided to starve me and wanted to wait for you girls," Jasper replied.

"Aww… and you didn't want to see us, little bro?" Rosalie teased.

Jasper scowled, "Not all of you," his eyes lingering upon Alice, who glared at him.

"Good Morning, Bella," Edward said happily. Finally noticing them, he grinned at the other girls and led Bella out of the room as she blushed.

Emmett, realizing that his girlfriend had also arrived, leaped up and swung his arm around her, "Hey Rose, sleep well?"

Rosalie rolled her eyes at him and said, "Yeah, yeah. Come on, I'm starved," as they left the room together.

Hermione, Ron, and Harry soon followed.

"Why do girls take so bloody long?" Ron wondered exasperatedly. A loud smack and a yelp could be heard following this outburst.

Alice giggled. Looking around, she became aware that only she and Jasper were left in the common room.

Her stomach growled, and Jasper smirked, "Someone seems hungry; shall we?"

Giving him a glare, Alice hastily skipped out. But, Jasper's long strides quickly caught up to her.

"Stupid, long legs; so unfair," Alice sighed, saying it a little louder than she intended, and letting her words reach _someone's_ ears. The owner of those ears smirked.

As they entered the Great Hall, Alice noticed the ceiling had changed to a serene blue sky, with bright puffy clouds. While walking to the Gyffindor table, she realized the many whispers around her.

"Why is the new girl with _him!?_"

"How dare she steal my dear Jasper away from me?"

"Ooh, lucky Hale; he got the new girl!"

"I'm gonna kill her!"

"Think he'd hook me up?"

"MY JASPER!"

Alice sat down, rather alarmed, and felt her cheeks heat up. She couldn't believe they thought he and _Hale_ were _together._ She shuddered, and saw that Jasper was looking quite uncomfortable too.

"Freaks," Rosalie hissed at the gossiping students. Bella and Edward appeared rather annoyed at their peers. Emmett, however, was quite enjoying this, and wouldn't stop laughing until the Weasley twins decided smacked him on the head.

Alice decided to ignore the whispers, and focused on breakfast.

Then, Professor McGonagall came around and handed out their class schedules. As Alice had received all O's on her O.W.L.'s, she was able to take all N.E.W.T classes. She glanced over at Jasper's schedule and groaned, "Wonderful, we have the exact same classes."

Jasper looked at her quizzically, "You have all N.E.W.T. classes?" She nodded. "Huh, didn't know you had it in you, Cullen; this is just great," he sighed, frustrated. Although, a part of him wondered if he really minded so much after all.

After consulting with everyone else, she discovered that they had Advanced Transfiguration first, like her. However, only Jasper was in Alice's next class, Divination.

"Dude, why are even taking that class?" Emmett asked Jasper, who shrugged.

"Come on; let's get a head start to Transfiguration. McGonagall would kill us if we were late on the first day," Edward said. They quickly followed him out the Great Hall.

"Yeah, she'd be like: _How dare you set such a bad example for the younger students!? You are seventh years, now! I expect you to act like it! Oh, well, too bad. As punishment, I shall transfigure you all into goldfish, and feed you to the Giant Squid!_" Ron said in a remarkably McGonagall-like voice.

"_But, of course, not you, Jasper, dear. My life would be incomplete without you here,_" Emmett added in a high-pitched girlish voice, as they shuddered, imagining Professor McGonagall actually saying that.

"Keep that up and you might just become squid food, Emmett," Jasper snickered.

Emmett shook his head, "No can do, man. I'm best mates with the Squid; he would never eat me," he smirked.

"Oh, my bad," grinned Jasper.

The rest of their walk to Transfiguration was quite uneventful. However, Bella did manage to trip over thin air twice. As they walked in the classroom, they discovered that they were the first students there.

"Oh good, the first students to arrive are of my own house," Professor McGonagall said, beaming at Jasper.

After they took their seats, the rest of the class marched in; although, there weren't very many other students.

Professor McGonagall took roll, and then immediately launched into a lecture.

"Listen here people. This is your last and final year at Hogwarts- one of your most important too. This year will affect the rest of your lives as adults. Now, Transfiguration is one of the most complex and dangerous types of magic you will learn here- especially now that you are in Advanced Transfiguration. It is an essential skill to master for most careers. I know that most of you are fairly decent at this, some better than others. But, no matter your level of skill, I trust that you all will take this very seriously. Anyone messing around will leave and not come back. Now, at the N.E.W.T. level…." she continued like this for most of the class.

"For homework, you will complete an essay on Conjuring Spells; a minimum of three rolls of parchment is required, due Thursday. Class dismissed."

The Gryffindors trudged out of the room.

"THREE ROLLS OF PARCHMENT!?" Harry and Ron yelled simultaneously as soon as they were out of earshot of Professor McGonagall.

"Hermione! You know we love you! You have to help us!" they begged. Hermione simply rolled her eyes.

"No, I don't think we heard her right. Yeah, we'll just pretend we thought it was-er- three inches of parchment!" Emmett desperately tried to convince himself.

Hermione, Edward, Bella, Rosalie, Alice, and Jasper just shook their heads at their friends.

They soon departed to attend their separate classes. Bella- who gave Edward a sad look- and Hermione went to Ancient Runes; Emmett, Rosalie, and Ron took Care of Magical Creatures; and Harry and Edward went to Arithmancy.

"Guess that leaves us two for Divination," Jasper said to Alice.

"Lead the way."

After climbing two floors of staircases, Alice, annoyed by the awkward silence, asked curiously, "So, is Divination fun?"

"Actually, I didn't even really want to take this class. I guess McGonagall tweaked it a bit to match your schedule. Oh well, I can always switch classes later if I want," Jasper explained.

"Why, is it that bad?" Alice asked, disregarding the fact that he was forced to take this class because of her.

"Erm- well, it all seems to be a load of rubbish to me. Besides, Trelawney's not exactly the best teacher. Although, you'll ace her class as long as you make up bad things happening," Jasper laughed.

Alice was rather taken aback at their first civil conversation.

"Sounds- er- fun?" she replied rather unenthusiastically. She looked around, "Are you sure we're going the right way? We've been walking a long time already."

"Uh huh. It just takes awhile to get there because it's in the North Tower."

Five minutes later, they found themselves on yet another staircase, without a single sign of being near the North Tower.

"Ugh, Hale! The bell already rang, and we're lost. Haven't you learned anything here after six years?!" Alice yelled.

"Hey! I don't go to the North Tower everyday, you know. It's not like I live there. Besides, I haven't even stepped into the cursed Divination classroom since I dropped the subject back in third year!" Jasper shouted back.

Alice was about to retort, when she led out a scream. "Oh Merlin! The freakin' stairs are moving. We're never gonna get there now!"

"Calm down Cullen! Look, there's a portrait, we can ask it for directions."

Accepting her fate, Alice took a deep breath and left the stairs, walking towards the portrait, behind Jasper.

The portrait revealed a picture of a short, squat knight on a fat, gray pony.

"What villains are these that dare trespass upon my private lands! Draw, you knaves, you dogs!" the knight yelled. He then proceeded to tug his sword out of it scabbard and brandished it violently. However, the sword was too long for him, and he toppled over. Jasper was trying hard to hold his laughter in, while Alice giggled and skipped closer to the picture.

"Are you alright?" she asked kindly.

"Oh, a beautiful lady!" he exclaimed. Jasper rolled his eyes, quite irritated by the knight already.

Alice laughed again and said, "We're looking for the North Tower, you don't happen to know the way, do you?"

"A quest! Of course, madam, follow me. Bring your servant boy along too!" he suggested, pointing to Jasper.

Alice grinned and said to Jasper, "You heard him, Hale."

They followed the crazy knight as he shouted, "We shall find our goal, or else perish bravely in the charge!"

Jasper muttered, "There's no way I'm risking my life for Trelawney's class."

Alice almost laughed at that, but suppressed her giggle at the last second. What was she thinking, laughing at something _he_ said?

As they followed him as he ran through neighboring portraits, the only indication to his location was the loud clanking of metal armor being heard every so often.

At last, Alice and Jasper climbed the tightly spiraling steps, panting. It seemed to go on forever, and Alice quickly fell behind. Sighing, Jasper grabbed her hand and dragged her up the stairs with him, leaving Alice quite surprised.

Finally, they reached a landing, and the knight cried, "Farewell! If ever you have need of noble heart and steely sinew, call upon Sir Cadogan!"

"Thank you very much, Sir Cadogan!" Alice said brightly.

"Er- yeah, thanks," Jasper said rather reluctantly.

There was an open circular trapdoor with a silver ladder hanging from it on the ceiling. Next to it, a brass plaque read: Sibyll Trelawney, Divination teacher.

"Well, we made it," Alice said.

Jasper nodded and smirked, "After you."

"Coward," she sniffed, and climbed the ladder, with Jasper behind her.

They emerged into the strangest-looking classroom ever. In fact, it didn't look like a classroom at all, more like a cross between an attic and an old-fashioned tea shop. The curtains were closed, and the room was soaked in a dim, crimson light. It was extremely warm, and the fire seemed to be giving off a heavy, sickly sort of perfume as it heated a large copper kettle. The shelves surrounding them were crammed with dusty feathers, stubs of candles, tattered pack of playing cards, crystal balls, and a great array of teacups. There were at least twenty small circular tables crammed inside it, all surrounded by puffy armchairs, which the class was currently seated upon.

The eyes of the entire room stared at them. A group of Hufflepuff girls got particularly excited at the sight of Jasper.

Jasper cringed and hissed, "You better thank me, Cullen. Those girls are probably going to kill me!"

"Why are you two late?" a misty voice asked.

At first, Alice thought that a large, glittering insect was addressing them. But when she properly inspected it, she realized that it was Professor Trelawney, a very thin woman who wore large glasses that greatly magnified her eyes- thus, giving her the appearance of an enlarged fly. There was a gauzy shawl draped around her, and numerous chains and beads were hung around her neck. Her arms and hands were encrusted with shiny bangles and rings.

"We were caught up in some Head business," Jasper said.

"I see, and why was Miss Cullen with you?"

"I was told to stay with her at all times, and I couldn't let her wander off by herself. She might have gotten lost," Jasper lied smoothly. The surrounding girls gasped at the fact that Jasper had announced that he had to "stay with her at all times." Alice had difficulty suppressing her laughter.

After a long moment, Professor Trelawney said, "Very well, sit down." She pointed to the only two open seats left, forcing Alice and Jasper to sit with each other.

They reluctantly made their way over as Professor Trelawney began to speak again, "Now, in preparation for the N.E.W.T exams at the end of the year, we will review everything that we have learned in the past; starting with tea leaf reading."

With a wave of her wand, cups of tea made their way towards the students.

"You will be paired with the person next to you. First, drink your tea until only the dregs remain. Swill these around the cup three times with the left hand, then turn the cup upside down on its saucer, wait for the last of the tea to drain away, and then give it to your partner to read. You will interpret the pattern using the book, _Unfogging the Future._ You may begin."

After Jasper and Alice finished their cups of tea, swilled the cup around as instructed, and then drained the cup, Jasper asked, "Ready, partner?"

"Yeah, whatever. I think you were right," Alice sighed.

Jasper smirked, "I usually am- care to specify?"

Alice glared at him, "This class _does_ seem to be a load of rubbish. And Trelawney- ugh," she shuddered.

"Told you so," Jasper said as they exchanged teacups.

"Right," said Alice as they opened their books. "What do you see in mine?"

"A load of soggy brown stuff," Jasper replied. The heavily perfumed smoke in the room was making him feel sleepy and stupid.

"Broaden your minds, my dears, and allow your eyes to see past the mundane!" Professor Trelawney cried through the gloom.

Both Alice and Jasper burst into silent fits of laughter, and tried to pull themselves together.

"Hmm…there's a blob that looks a bit like an acorn," Jasper continued, "Maybe you're going to save a squirrel?"

Alice was about to respond, but Professor Trelawney announced, "Now, we are going to share each other's interpretations. Why don't we start with you dear?" she said to Alice.

"Er- sure," Alice said with a smug glance at Jasper. "Well, based off my interpretation, it seems as if Hale will be ambushed by a bunch of black badgers that love the color yellow soon," she fabricated, referring to the Hufflepuff girls- Hufflepuff's mascot was a badger, and its colors were yellow and black. "Sadly," she continued as the rest of the class and Professor Trelawney's eyes widened- Jasper had resorted to shoving his fist inside his mouth to stifle his laughter, "while the badgers are arguing over him, a large snake will sneak in and push him into a group of highly- trained, vicious ninja werewolves. Seeing that Hale had been lost to the doggies, the badgers will jump in after him to try and rescue him. However, neither Hale nor badgers will survive," she concluded.

The Hufflepuff girls seemed to be on the verge of tears at the mention of Jasper not surviving. One of them even wrote on their parchment: _REMINDER: MUST SAVE MY DARLING JASPER FROM THOSE HORRENDOUS BADGERS!_

As Professor Trelawney recovered from Alice's startling tale about Jasper's unfortunate future, she proclaimed, "My dear, you are remarkably gifted with the Inner Eye!" She then began clapping, along with the rest of the class. At this point, Jasper started making choking noises, no doubt from trying to stifle his laughter with his fist.

"But, what if I don't want to die?" Jasper whined.

"Oh, too bad," Alice said smugly. She turned to him with a serious expression, "And don't you question my 'Inner Eye'!"

"Okay class, pack away your things. You are free to go," Professor Trelawney announced.

They walked out of the classroom.

"Time for lunch?" Alice asked.

"Yeah."

"And you're sure you know the way?"

"Not a clue, but just follow everyone else," Jasper smirked.

Alice sighed as she and Jasper walked to lunch, reflecting upon her morning. _I guess the Head Boy isn't so bad after all,_ she mused silently.

* * *

A/N: I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Thank you so much to everyone who reviewed and read this story! You guys are awesome! Review please! :)


	6. Barbie Dolls

Alice and Jasper finally reached the Great Hall and made their way towards the Gryffindor table where Edward, Bella, Emmett, Rosalie, Harry, Ron, and Hermione were already seated.

"Hey guys, how was class?" Jasper asked as he sat down next to Edward. Alice chose to sit on the opposite side, next to Harry.

"Ugh, I guess Hagrid was in a bad mood today. He made us look after the bloody flobberworms!" Ron half-shouted.

"Professor Babbling gave us a load of homework for Ancient Runes," Bella groaned.

"Yeah, Vector assigned us a bunch for Arithmancy, too," Harry said dejectedly.

"How about you guys?" Hermione asked.

Alice laughed, "No homework from Trelawney! But, we- er- well, Hale got us lost on the way to Divination. We were about twenty minutes late."

"What!" Edward yelled. "How'd he do that?"

"For your information, Cullen didn't help at all," Jasper snapped, irritated.

"I'm new here!" Alice defended.

"Yeah, it's not her fault. How'd you guys get there then?" Rosalie inquired.

"We followed Sir Cadogan," Jasper muttered.

"What? That loony old knight?" Emmett snickered.

Alice nodded and tucked into her meal. The food was delicious, and she found herself taking more and more helpings of everything.

"Emmett," Jasper laughed, as Alice took her fifth helping of spaghetti, snapping her out of her food fantasy, "I think Cullen here may be some competition."

Emmett's eyes widened in shock, his pile of food left forgotten, as he grinned at Alice, staring from her plate of food back to her.

"No…way..." she said as she suddenly understood, trying to sound scared. "There's no way that you can beat me at eating!" she finished with a laugh.

"Challenging me, I see you are?" Emmett asked in his best Yoda voice.

"No, no, it's okay. You'd probably lose, anyways," Alice said with a wide smile.

"Oooh, Emmett," Harry teased as Edward, Bella, Rosalie, Jasper, Ron, and Hermione laughed.

"You're on," Emmett grinned wickedly. "The first one to finish all of their food- we both get the same - wins."

"Fine," Alice agreed with a roll of her eyes.

After the food was collected Edward announced, "On the count of three."

"One."

"Two."

Emmett looked at Alice and mouthed, "You're going down."

"THREE!"

Alice and Emmett immediately dug into their food. Emmett was munching- or swallowing- his food so fast, some food particles flew out. It was quite disgusting. Rosalie hastily scooted away. Alice, on the other hand, ate extremely neatly and daintily. However, she devoured it so quickly, she almost became a blur.

Finally, she sat up, a triumphant look on her face as she glanced to a still-eating Emmett. Edward called, "EMMETT, STOP!"

Emmett looked up, dazed from the competition, with bits of food stuck on him. Hermione sighed, with a wave of her wand, the food on him vanished.

"And Alice is the winner!"

"Wha- how- you- Alice!?" Emmett yelled angrily to smug looking Alice.

"You got beat by a girl!" the boys chanted. "Emmett got beat by a girl!"

She smiled- there was no evidence that she had just won an eating contest from a giant- and patted his arm sympathetically, "Its okay Emmett, you didn't know better."

Then, Alice turned to Edward, Harry, Ron, and Jasper. She placed her hands on her hips and asked angrily, "And…just what is wrong with being beat by _girls_?"

"Er- well- you know- ah- um…" the boys attempted to say. Rosalie, Hermione, Bella, and Alice glared at them menacingly, while Emmett watched; he was so happy he was glowing.

"Ron! Say something!" Harry hissed, clearly scared.

"Err- Edward! You're smart, you go!" Ron whispered frantically.

"Harry! You've faced Voldemort, you can do it!" Edward yelled dramatically, earning strange looks from the nearby Ravenclaws.

"Are you kidding?! I'd rather fight Voldemort a million times than face _them_! Come on Jasper, you're Head Boy! Save us!" Harry cried.

"But, what would happen to all the little kids at school after they killed me? Think of the children!" Jasper pleaded desperately.

"Hermione will take care of them, now go!" Ron hissed as Edward pushed him forward.

Jasper looked back at his so- called "friends," and gave them his deadliest glare ever- quite possibly the last in his lifetime, he thought to himself. He looked frightened as he faced the girls- who were trying to hide their amused looks.

"Erm, listen, ladies. We didn't mean any disrespect towards girls- there's-er-absolutely nothing wrong with being beaten by them either," he began nervously- Alice noticed that he had a habit of running his hands through his hair when he was; the girls started to nod slowly. "I mean, we're really sorry," he turned around and glanced at the guys, and grinned, "or at least _I'm _sorry- since I was the only one that came to talk to you. Anyways, you girls are awesome, and we- I- in no way disrespect you. I was wrong to do anything that would ever imply something like that, and apologize for my actions," he concluded rather formally.

After a long moment- during which Jasper nervously held his breath and crossed his fingers- Bella, Rosalie, and Hermione grinned at him.

"Aww… Jazz… I knew there was a reason you were my favorite brother!" Rosalie exclaimed.

"Er…but I'm you're only brother, Rose," he attempted to explain as his sister hugged him.

"Details," she laughed.

Bella smiled at him in appreciation.

"Yes," agreed Hermione. "You were much braver than _some people I know_," she said, glaring at Harry and Ron.

Alice just rolled her eyes at him, not really sure if she believed him. _He sounded really sincere though_, she thought. Emmett came over to high-five him, while gloating at the other boys. Harry, Ron, and Edward glared at them.

Edward walked over to Bella and apologized, unleashing the power of his dazzling topaz eyes on her. She had no chance- although, Alice reflected, no one really did when it came to Edward.

Harry and Ron, on the other hand, were having no luck with Hermione. However, after they started begging on their knees, Hermione burst into laughter, and somehow, could not stop herself from teasing them. Grinning triumphantly at each other for getting her to talk to them, Harry and Ron attentively listened to her lecture on gender discrimination. The two boys even pulled out sheets of parchment and began intently taking detailed notes.

They quickly finished lunch and decided to head for their separate classes. Edward, Bella, and Ron, and Hermione had Charms after lunch; while Harry, Emmett, Rosalie, Jasper, and Alice had double Potions. Bella seemed to be much more relieved that Edward was in the same class with her.

As they exited the Great Hall, two girls walked up to them, shaking their hips wildly. The first girl was a brunette, while the second girl had bright red hair. They were both Slytherins.

"Hi Ron, Harry, Emmett, Edward, _Jasper_," they giggled. Maria emphasized the last name. Everyone knew that she had a crush on Jasper.

The boys cringed as she turned to Alice, "Oh, you like must be the new girl. It's like _so _nice to have you here," Victoria said in a sickeningly fake voice that obviously contradicted her words. "I'm like Maria Robinson, and this is like Victoria Savage."

Victoria- who was trying to catch Edward's attention by batting her eyelashes- reluctantly removed her gaze from him. He looked as if he was about to throw up, and was having a hard time suppressing his vomit. Victoria glanced at Alice with her beady eyes and said, "Oh! like hi."

"Hello," Alice replied in an annoyed tone, wondering why anyone would ever use those many "likes" in a sentence.

Bella was shooting daggers at the two girls, while Rosalie asked harshly, "Can we help you two with something?"

Maria was about to respond when Rosalie interrupted, "Oh good, didn't think so." And with that, she walked out of the Great Hall, leaving drooling boys staring after her. She was followed by the rest of the gang.

"Ugh, you okay there, Edward? You look sick," Hermione remarked. Edward just tightened his grip around Bella.

"I might need to go to the Hospital Wing," Harry half- joked. Ron looked extremely green.

"Yeah man, I didn't think we would make it out alive. It's all thanks to my wonderful Rosie," Emmett beamed.

"Aww... anything for you, sweetie, _anything at all,_" Rosalie replied suggestively.

"ALRIGHT, let's get going! We don't want to be late!" Jasper cut in, horrified at the thought of his sister and his best friend.

Ron chortled as Edward winced and said, "Yeah, we gotta get to Charms." He headed towards the classroom with a still-fuming Bella, followed by Ron and Hermione.

"Double Potions, my _favorite_ class, especially with the Slytherins," Harry groaned and led the way for Jasper, Alice, Emmett and Rosalie.

As Emmett, Rosalie, and Harry began their own conversation, Alice smirked, "Seems you have another _wonderful_ admirer, Hale."

"Jealous, Cullen?" Jasper asked smugly.

"In your dreams- wait, no, it probably wouldn't be possible there, either," she retorted.

"Right, whatever you say," Jasper chucked as they descended the stairs to the dungeon where the classroom was located.

Alice shivered; it was freezing down here.

When she was seated, she studied Professor Snape, the Potions master. He had greasy black hair, a hooked nose, sallow skin, and cold black eyes. Alice wasn't getting a very good first impression of him; it seemed like Harry was right, Potions wasn't going to be fun.

Although the Slytherins arrived late to class, Snape pretended to pay no attention. Rumor had it that because he was Head of Slytherin, he always favored them.

As Malfoy, one of the Slytherins in attendance sat down, he gave Alice a sickening wink. She had a hard time repressing a shudder. Jasper, who noticed this, glared at Malfoy when Alice wasn't paying attention.

Professor Snape began class by taking the roll call and giving a lecture on N.E.W.T's. Then, he proceeded to test the class on random pieces of potion information.

"Potter, what are the key ingredients used in making the Draught of Peace?" he said in barely more than a whisper; but, they were able to catch every word. He evidently had the gift of keeping a class silent without effort.

"For-"Harry began.

"Wrong," Snape cut in. "Ten points from Gryffindor." It didn't take a genius to figure out that Snape hated Harry.

"Hale, what is Felix Felicis?"

"Felix Felicis is liquid luck, which temporarily makes the user extremely lucky," Jasper answered smoothly.

"An answer copied almost word for word from _The Standard Book of Spells, Grade Seven_," Snape said. "But, yes, correct." Malfoy sniggered in the back of the room.

"Malfoy, who is the greatest teacher of all?"

"Why, you, of course, sir!" Malfoy replied.

"Excellent, fifty points to Slytherin!" Alice raised her eyebrows and shot a disbelieving look at Harry, who looked furious.

"McCarty, where do you find a bezoar?"

"In a goat's stomach," Emmett responded.

"Been studying with Hale, have we?" Snape taunted. Emmett ignored him and stared at the wall.

"Ah, yes, Cullen," Snape said, turning to Alice. "Our new student; let's see how much they taught at Beauxbatons, shall we?" he sneered.

"Yes, sir," Alice replied. The Slytherins began laughing evilly, delighted at the prospective humiliation of a Gryffindor.

"Let's see, state the process for brewing the Draught of Living Death."

Alice nodded. "To make the Draught of Living Death, one would first stew twelve Lacewing flies for seven and a half minutes, and then let it cool for two minutes. After, three slices of asphodel must be added to the Lacewing flies, and immediately stirred thirteen times clockwise. A turquoise-colored steam will be released from the substance, and after waiting for four minutes and thirty-seven seconds, twenty-four chopped valerian roots- all six inches long- must be added. It should look like a smooth, black currant- colored liquid at this point. Then, the juice of one sopophorous bean must be poured into the potion. Even though standard texts instruct potioneers to cut the bean to release the juice, crushing it with the flat side of a silver dagger is much more effective. The liquid should then turn a shade of lilac. I've found that after that, to make the potion a pale pink, instead of stirring counter-clockwise until the potion turns as clear as water, it's much easier when you add one clockwise stir every seven clockwise ones. Then, a sprig of peppermint should be added. This would turn it a bright red color. After that, four shredded skins of boomslang needs to be added and stirred eighty nine times, causing the liquid to make a loud sizzling noise for exactly four seconds. Then, a cup of powdered wormwood must be added and brewed for sixty-three minutes. The resulting potion should look like a royal blue color, and smell like cinnamon." Alice recited this all very calmly. She knew she had been showing off, but this was against the Slytherins.

Snape and the rest of the class stared at her with dumbfounded expressions.

"Is there anything else you would like to know, professor?" Alice asked sweetly.

"Er- no, that…that was good. Ah…uh…ten points to Gryffindor." Snape responded a bit flustered. The Slytherins looked like they had been punched in the face. The Gryffindors were flabbergasted. Never in the history of time has Snape ever rewarded Gryffindor for anything.

Alice just sat back in her seat with a smug and satisfied smile.

The bell rang, signaling the end of the class.

"An essay on the Draught of Living Death for homework, two rolls of parchment, will be due." Snape said. Then, the students filed out of the cold room.

Jasper, Harry, Emmett, and Rosalie all stared at Alice as soon as they left the dungeons.

"What?" Alice asked innocently.

"That was bloody brilliant!" Harry exploded. "Did you see the look on Malfoy's face? Priceless."

"Yeah, I've never seen Snape give points to any Gryffindor before. That was amazing," said Rosalie.

"That was- that- it was a decent explanation. You did okay, I suppose," Jasper admitted reluctantly. Alice smirked at him.

Suddenly, Emmett dropped to his knees and cried, "Alice! You know, you're like a sister to me, and as a sister, it is your responsibility to help her brother- me- when he needs it!"

"And what would you need?" Alice asked with an amused expression while Rosalie grinned knowingly.

"A… potions tutor," he mumbled.

"Oh! Of course!" Alice agreed happily. "Although, are you sure it wouldn't be better if the Head Boy did it? After all, I'm sure he could do _much_ better than my only decent work," she added with a smug glance at Jasper.

Jasper just glared back as Harry laughed.

"Nah, little sis," Emmett grinned and leaned forward towards Alice, pretending like he was whispering. "Just between you and me, Jasper's really not that good at Potions."

"Right, are you two done with your "secretive" conference? We have to get to class, because _this_ time, it wouldn't be _my_ fault," he said in an irritated tone.

They parted for their separate classes. Harry, Rosalie, and Emmett had Charms next; and because Professor McGonagall was _so_ kind to match their schedules, Jasper and Alice both had Defense Against the Dark Arts.

The pair walked to the class in silence. When they finally entered, most of the class had already arrived.

The teacher was quite young- and handsome, Alice noted- and he had sandy brown hair, and warm, brown eyes.

"Welcome to Defense Against the Dark Arts. I am Professor Seth Clearwater. Congratulations to every one of you for making it to the N.E.W.T class. However, I must warn you, it will be very difficult; I have no doubt all of you will succeed, though," he said with an encouraging smile. Professor Clearwater then proceeded to take roll.

"Now, we will start off by doing a research project on some more advanced subjects. Being my first year here, I am not too sure with the level that you students are at. So, we will be doing a little reviewing before we move on.

"Each of you will receive a folded slip of parchment. You must not open it until I say so," he instructed and waved his wand to pass out pieces of parchment at random.

"Okay, now-" he was interrupted by a loud **BOOM!**

Apparently, Mike Newton- how did he get in this class? - decided to ignore directions and open the slip. His face was now covered with makeup. His lips were painted ruby red, his eyes were outlined in a thick layer eyeliner and green eye shadow, and his cheeks contained rather alarmingly amount of blush. His hair was also fashioned into crooked pigtails with bright pink bows in them. He even wore a pair of sparkly butterfly earrings.

The class cringed at the horrific sight.

"Ah, see what happens when you don't follow directions? I must say though…" he consulted his attendance chart, "Newton, you make a rather… interesting doll. I would give you to my sister, Leah- she loves dolls- but, I'm afraid she would tear you apart," Professor Clearwater remarked with a grin. The class erupted into laughter, except for Mike, who was trying to hold in his tears.

People better be prepared when the students bolted up in the middle of the night screaming: AHHHH!!! NO! SPARE ME BARBIE DOLL NEWTON!

"Now, you may open your slips," Professor Clearwater declared.

Alice unfolded her piece of parchment and stared at it in confusion.

It contained one word:

_Vampire_


	7. A Solution to Bad Hair

_**Discovering Hogwarts- Chapter Seven: A Solution to Bad Hair**_

**_--_**

_Vampire? _

Alice had no idea what that single word upon the slip of parchment meant. She looked around the room, glad that she wasn't the only one confused.

She began doodling on a piece of parchment as she waited. Eventually, Professor Clearwater cleared his throat to explain, "That's the topic of your research report. Now to make things more interesting, you will be working in groups."

The students glanced nervously around the room, hoping that they wouldn't be paired with anyone too horrible. Although the class mainly consisted of Ravenclaws and Gryffindors, a few Slytherins and a Hufflepuff managed to slip in.

Professor Clearwater chuckled, "Well, you're groups have already been picked. There are two sets of each topic, so the two people who have been assigned that topic shall be partners.

"Alright, our first lucky winners get... Vampire!"

Alice hopped up at the announcement, desperately hoping that she wouldn't be paired with that weird Mike Newton guy or any Slytherins.

However, she wasn't sure if she really preferred the person that stood up over the previously stated options.

"Ah, Mr. Hale," Professor Clearwater said to a rather irritated Jasper. "And you are…?" he questioned Alice.

She opened her mouth to reply, but apparently _someone_ decided to _help_ her_._

"Alice Cullen, sir," Jasper answered automatically.

Professor Clearwater seemed slightly surprised, but nodded, "I see. Well, good luck to the both of you, although I've never really liked vampires," his nose crinkled with disgust as if he smelled something particularly nasty.

"Huh? I have to be partners with _him, _sir?" Alice asked, finally realizing what was happening.

"Yes, is there a problem?" the professor questioned with a raised eyebrow.

"Er- no, not really. Well, yes, I suppose. Do I have to work with him? Can't I work with someone else? Anyone else?" Alice pleaded.

Jasper was quite amused as he watched her. However, the rest of the class was flabbergasted. No one missed an opportunity to work with Jasper Hale!

"No, I'm afraid the groups are final," Professor Clearwater frowned. Alice sat down and glared at her desk.

She was furious at Jasper. She was perfectly capable of taking care of herself. And he had to be _helpful _in front of the teacher, especially! Now, she had to be _partners_ with him!? Ugh.

She spent the rest of the class thinking of tortures that Jasper should have to endure, occasionally tuning in to listen about the other projects people were assigned.

"So, while this project is fairly open-minded, I hope you will remember to include detailed information suitable for N.E.W.T level Defense. You may present it however you like, the more creative the better. The project shall be due before Winter Break. You are free to go."

Alice packed her belongings slowly, thinking of all the work she had received in only one day. When she exited the room, she saw Jasper leaning casually against the wall, waiting for someone- waiting for her? All thoughts of killing him vanished from her head as she stared at him. He looked amazing; almost like a Greek- god, in fact.

She suddenly became aware of the subject that her thoughts revolved around, and was horrified. She was determined not to act like every other girl in the school. After frantically trying to convince herself that her insanity was just due to the lack of sleep- although she knew she had slept wonderfully- she realized that the previously discussed subject had begun speaking.

"Aren't we lucky?" Jasper teased, allowing Alice's anger to immediately rush towards her.

"Oh yeah, definitely," she snapped sarcastically. "And why did you answer for me in class?! I'm perfectly capable of speaking for myself-"

"Yes, I think I'm quite aware of your talented speaking skills," Jasper pointed out with a smirk.

She glared at him, "See! You- you're always- you- UGH!" Her anger and frustration were apparently overpowering her ability to form coherent sentences.  
Jasper gazed at her, unconsciously thinking that she looked adorable when she was angry.

However, Alice caught him staring, her emerald eyes gleaming with confusion. "Er- let's um…head back to the common room," Jasper said, embarrassed.

Still perplexed, she followed him up to Gryffindor Tower, studying the castle more carefully than she had the previous night. She noticed a cat with dust-colored fur. Its bulging yellow, lamp-like eyes stared at her, monitoring her every move.

Alice nudged Jasper and indicated to the cat, "What's that?"

His crystal blue eyes searched around in the direction she had gestured towards, before noticing the cat, and explained knowledgably, "Well, I believe that would be a cat."

Alice glared at him and he smirked, "She's Mrs. Norris; she belongs to Filch, the caretaker. Completely evil, she is."

"Oh? Is she?" she inquired in a disbelieving tone.

"Menacing," he nodded seriously. "She'll get Filch immediately if you even breathe wrong."

Alice shook her head, laughing, as they reached the welcoming sight of the Gryffindor common room.

~oOo~

The next few weeks passed by in a similar fashion. The 7th year students were practically drowning in the vast amounts of homework that the teachers felt the need to assign them.

However, Alice had quickly gotten used to the daily school routines, and was easily attending her classes, acting as if she had been at Hogwarts for the past six years. But, the teachers had all credited her smooth transition towards Jasper, even if- in Alice's opinion- he hardly did anything.

Alice was immensely grateful to Bella, Rosalie, and Hermione, because they had truly helped her during her first unfamiliar days at Hogwarts. They quickly became the best of friends, and could hardly be separated now. Edward, Emmett, Harry, and Ron had all been very friendly as well; although, Harry looked much more tired as of late.

Harry would sometimes share his troubles with them. Because her parents greatly sheltered her from the terrors of the Wizarding world, Alice had no idea things had gotten this terrible.

She had known about the return of the Dark Wizard, Voldemort, and Harry's tale; but until her friends had explained to her, she was completely unaware of the horrifying disasters that were occurring. Alice was determined to get a subscription of the _Daily Prophet_, but Hermione assured her that all they printed were lies that the Ministry wished to publish. It seemed the _Quibbler _was a far better choice.

Harry had also told them that he was taking private lessons from Dumbledore about Voldemort, to study any of his possible weaknesses.

"'Morning Alice," Harry said, dragging her from her musings.

"Hey Harry! How are you?" Alice smiled, surprised. They were the first ones down for breakfast.

"Fine. You excited?" Harry asked, referring to the day's events.

It was finally the weekend before Halloween, announcing the arrival of the first Hogsmeade excursion of the year. Though most third years and above were quite happy about this rare break from their usual studies, Alice was beyond ecstatic.

"Of course! I'm definitely ready for a break, you?" she inquired.

"Yeah," he said as the rest of their friends entered the Great Hall.

Edward was pulling a reluctant Bella to their table, causing Alice to cast a questioning look towards him. "She doesn't want to go shopping for a costume," he explained.

Alice's eyes lit up. "Shopping? Costumes?!" she asked eagerly.

Rosalie laughed, "Oh, forgot to tell you. We have a Halloween feast every year and everyone dresses up for it. It's amazing."

"Foo-gud-doo, ouse-eves-do-bwilent-jaw (Food is good too, the house elves do a brilliant job)," Ron declared through a mouthful of eggs, while Emmett nodded in agreement.

This earned them a glare from Hermione, as she felt rather strongly about the treatment of house-elves, the magical creatures that served them. She believed it to be a sort of slavery, and formed the Society for the Promotion of Elfish Welfare or S.P.E.W. Alice had finally joined the organization, paying a fee of two sickles, after much badgering by Hermione.

As Alice had arrived particularly early for breakfast, she was already finished. Glancing around the room impatiently, she noticed an irritated Jasper trudging towards the table.

"Thanks for waking me up," he snapped, glaring at the boys.

"Oh, you're so very welcome," Emmett said in a quite formal and polite manner. "We knew those seventeen pitchers of iced water would do the trick!" he grinned.

Jasper ignored him and quickly tucked into breakfast. Alice giggled, noticing that his honey blonde hair was sticking messily in different directions. Actually, she discovered while taking a look at all of the boys, all of them had extraordinarily untidy hair, especially Edward.

Harry looked up, "What?"

"You guys all have the messiest hair!" she laughed.

"Ooh, you're so right," Rosalie agreed.

"So we've been told," Edward smirked. "Although, I'm not complaining though, since the ladies like it," he said with a sly glance towards Bella. Naturally, she blushed.

"That's just Bella- and she doesn't like the rest of the guys' hair," Hermione pointed out. Harry looked hurt.

"Right?" Rosalie asked mischievously.

Edward muttered something under his breath that sounded like, "She better not," while Ron chortled and patted him on the back.

"Besides, we don't either; so prove it," Alice said smugly. Although, she had to force herself to not look at Jasper while saying these words; otherwise, the lie would have never made it out.

"It's okay, we're only just _standing right here_," Jasper said in a seemingly indifferent tone.

Emmett laughed, "Oh please, I know how to settle this." He winked at the girls and stood up on the bench. "Attention everyone!" his booming voice rang out through the Hall. Every single pair of eyes fell upon the Gryffindor table.

Emmett turned to Jasper, who sighed and esxplained, "Right, sorry to interrupt everybody's breakfast, but according to some people," Jasper rolled his eyes at Alice, "we have a very important dilemma, and need your help."

"Anything for Jasper," a few girls yelled dreamily. Jasper looked a quite annoyed, perhaps even a little ill, and looked expectantly at Alice.

She grinned, "We think that Edward, Emmett, Harry, Ron, and Hale's hair is too messy. What do you guys think?" she asked pointing to each one as she named them, hardly able to contain her giggles.

"Um, if we say yes, can we kiss them?" someone asked hopefully. Even a couple staff members nodded their heads, much to the horror of the students.

Rosalie, Bella, even Hermione looked outraged- it was quite obvious that she liked Ron.

"Never mind, thanks though," Emmett yelled to everyone.

The rest of the students looked around, confused, and decided to continue eating. The chatter in the Great Hall resumed. However, many girls threw envious looks at the 7th year section of the Gryffindor table.

"Looks like people appreciate us more than you think," Harry laughed. Edward and Emmett were about to comment, but they were quickly silenced as they saw the threatening looks on their girlfriend's faces. Ron looked hopefully at Hermione, who gave him a smile.

Alice, however, burst into peals of laughter.

Jasper grinned to himself and secretly relished the beautiful musical sound of her giggles.

Little did he know, someone else did too.

* * *

A/N: Thanks so much to everyone who reviewed! Hope everyone had a wonderful New Year's! Good luck in 2009 :D Ooh, REVIEW please, any feedback is much appreciated!! =)


	8. Fizzing Whizbees

_**Discovering Hogwarts- Chapter Eight: Fizzing Whizbees**_

_**--**_

Alice impatiently drummed her fingers against the oak tables, occasionally taking a sip of her orange juice. She had finished her breakfast ages ago, and was now waiting on her friends. She was dying to go to Hogsmeade.

Emmett scowled at her for disturbing him during his favorite meal of the day. After muttering a few more 'Hurry up's, Jasper- who was already done with breakfast- leaned across the table and whispered to her, a grin dancing across his face, but in a very innocent tone, "So, you in a rush, Cullen?"

Irritated, Alice widened her eyes at him and glared, then proceeded to ignore him.

Jasper smirked triumphantly as he had succeeded in annoying Alice.

For the most part, their friends had finished their breakfasts. As Ron and Hermione were arguing over something trivial- possibly his eating habits- Ginny had arrived with a message.

"Hey, Ginny," Alice greeted with a smile, all traces of annoyance disappeared. Ginny and Alice had become fast friends, despite the redhead being younger than her.

"Hey, guys. I'm supposed to give you this, Harry," Ginny said.

It was a scroll of parchment with Harry's name written upon it in familiar thin, slanting writing.

"Thanks, Ginny… It's Dumbledore's next lesson!" Harry informed his friends, pulling open the parchment and quickly scanning its contents. "Monday evening!" He felt suddenly light and happy. "Want to join us in Hogsmeade, Ginny?" he asked hopefully.

"I'm going with Dean- might see you guys there," she replied, waving at them as she left.

Alice didn't miss the disappointed and rather jealous look that Harry had tried to conceal, and offered him a small smile, which he missed.

They gathered their belongings and walked to the Entrance Hall. Filch was standing at the oak front doors, checking off the names of people who had permission to go into Hogsmeade. The process took even longer than normal as Filch was triple-checking everybody with his Secrecy Sensor.

"What does it matter if we're smuggling Dark stuff OUT?" demanded Ron, eying the long thin Secrecy Sensor with apprehension. "Surely you ought to be checking what we bring back IN?" His cheek earned him a few extra jabs with the Sensor.

Rosalie, on the other hand, flashed Filch a gorgeous smile, leaving him stunned, and only barely receiving one light nudge with the Secrecy Sensor.

"Girls," Edward muttered. Ron glared at her, still wincing as they stepped out into the wind and rain.

The walk into Hogsmeade was not at all enjoyable. To make matters worse, the winding road that led to the village was crowded with students.

Edward and Emmett immediately wrapped their arms around Bella and Rosalie, shielding them from the stinging wind and rain...

Hermione shivered. Noticing this, Ron's ears turned scarlet as he nervously decided to pull his arm around her as well. Hermione was jubilant as she blushed.

Harry, however, was not that lucky and cursed the weather. He could be seen slapping himself every so often, because he had gone numb.

Even though Alice did her best to wrap her scarf around her face, she was already beginning to freeze. She began hopping up and down, as to prevent her from becoming a frozen Popsicle.

Jasper saw this, and without hesitation or consideration, pulled off his heavy winter cloak and draped it over her.

Alice stared at him in surprise, "Thanks," she said, her teeth chattering. "But, you would freeze, though!"

Jasper shook his head. "Nah, it's okay. I'm not cold," he responded nonchalantly.

Alice glanced around at the icy rain pouring down on them, and looked back at him- the guy who said he wasn't cold while just wearing a thin long-sleeved shirt- amused. He just sighed and dragged her along, trying to catch up to their friends, who were watching their exchange with great interest. Alice thought his hand felt very comforting and protecting, and it was actually quite warm.

As soon as they had reached the waiting group, Jasper let go of her hand. Strangely, small part of her felt rather sad and disappointed. But, she quickly pushed those thoughts aside.

Emmett eyed his two best friends with a smug look and opened his mouth to say something when Rosalie, conveniently, kicked him.

"Hey! What was that for?!" Emmett asked hotly.

Edward rolled his eyes and walked ahead while the rest followed him, staring at Emmett with disbelieving looks on their faces.

"Oh, so this is how you all treat me? I see how it is!" he shouted in a mock hurt voice.

"Glad you understand!" Harry replied seemingly unsympathetically, but with a grin.

Emmett's booming laugh echoed along the pathway to Hogsmeade as he ran to join his "caring" friends.

After a short while, they finally reached Hogsmeade. Alice gasped as she laid her eyes on the picturesque little village. It looked adorable- even in the rain.

She followed them towards the first building they came upon, eager to escape the relentlessly cruel weather. Jasper held the door open for them, and she caught a glimpse of the old sign that hung on the doorway as she entered. It read: _The Three Broomsticks_. She looked around, studying the inn. It seemed very cozy and was crowded with people.

"Thank Merlin," Ron shivered as they felt the warm air. The others nodded their heads in agreement.

After a quick search for any vacant tables, one was spotted near the fireplace. They dropped their belongings down on the table, relishing in the heat the fireplace radiated.

The boys soon left to get some drinks.

"I wish the weather wasn't so bad," Bella sighed.

Rosalie scowled as Alice chimed in, "Don't worry; I'm sure there's loads of things that we can do still, right?"

"I suppose," Hermione agreed.

The girls laughed and launched into a conversation about Halloween costumes, a topic that Bella wasn't quite too fond of. However, Alice excitedly reassured her that she would help; though, this didn't exactly help.

They were so caught up in their conversation that they were unaware of the boys returning with nine mugs of hot, steaming Butter beer.

"D'you guys think they'd get mad at me for drinking the Butter beer?" Ron mused.

This remark apparently got the girls' attentions.

"Yes, I think they would be rather devastated," Alice replied in a professional manner.

"Ah, pity," Ron sighed sadly.

The others grinned at their friends and sipped their beverages in silence. Alice sat there thinking, hypnotized by the contents of her cup as she swirled the liquid around.

She was just wondering about Jasper and how thoughtful he was of helping her when she soon became distracted by Emmett and Rosalie's blatant display of affection.

"Get a room," Jasper coughed loudly.

"We're already in one," Emmett smirked as Rosalie rolled her eyes.

"So what do we do now?" Harry asked before anyone else could retort.

"Well, I wanna check out Zonko's," Emmett declared, referring to Hogsmeade's famous joke shop.

"I have to get some more potion ingredients," Bella said.

"And I need some new quills," Hermione added.

"Why don't we all go off separately and meet back at the costume shop in an hour?" Edward suggested.

They nodded their heads in agreement and Harry said, "So, me, Ron, and Hermione will go to Scrivenshaft's; Bella and Edward will go to the Apothecary; Emmett and Rose will go to Zonko's; and Alice and Jasper will go do…whatever?"

Alice almost spit out her Butter beer, "Can't I go with Bella or Rose or Hermione?" she protested while Jasper rolled his eyes.

Harry hit Ron in the arm. Ron, understanding what was going on, teased, "C'mon Alice, you scared of Jasper?"

Alice sputtered, "What?! Him? Those first years aren't even afraid of him. Wait, maybe they are - never mind."

Hermione interjected, "Plus, McGonagall said that Jasper had to show you some part of Hogsmeade, and that we're to make sure that he does."

"But, can't you guys just make something up?" Alice asked desperately.

Emmett gasped in horror, "What? D'you take us to be people that would actually _lie_ to our dearest professor?"

They all gave him a pointed look.

"Oh, right, ignore me," Emmett hastily amended.

"Fine, fine," Alice said, annoyed, giving in to them.

"Awesome," Ron said as they hastily drained their mugs. Bundling themselves up with their scarves and cloaks, the nine Gryffindors stepped out of the pub.

They were met with a blast of bitter wind, which was like knives on their faces

"Okay! So we'll meet at the costume shop in one hour!" Harry confirmed, shouting over the wind.

They acknowledged the plan and headed off to their separate ways: Edward with Bella, Emmett with Rosalie, Harry with Ron and Hermione, and Alice with Jasper.

"Where do you want to go!?" Jasper asked Alice loudly over the wind.

"Anywhere out of this weather!" she yelled back.

He nodded his head and grabbed her hand- a habit of his, it seemed- and dragged her along to somewhere with more shelter.

They finally reached a bright looking shop. Tons of students could be seen through the windows.

"Ladies first," he said, smirking as he opened the door.

Alice sighed and shook her head as she entered.

A sweet, warm smell enveloped her, making her never want to leave. As she studied the place, she was in awe as she took in the grand collection of sweets lying on the shelves and counters.

"Welcome to Honeydukes," Jasper grinned.

"Wow," she said breathlessly. Then she turned to stare up at Jasper, "Any recommendations?"

He laughed and walked over to one of the shelves on the far side of the shop. When he finally reached his destination, he turned around to look at Alice; but she wasn't there. Confused- and for some reason, a little worried- he frantically searched around; he was sure she had followed him.

At that moment, Alice appeared, having just pushing herself out of the mass of people swarming the aisles. She looked slightly disheveled.

"What happened to you?" Jasper asked with a raised eyebrow, amused.

"I got lost in the crowd," she muttered.

Jasper started laughing, quite loudly too, much to Alice's annoyance. In fact, his laughter even attracted some girls to look around for the source of the deep, velvety, soothing noise.

"Silencio," Alice said.

The sound of Jasper's laughter disappeared, even though he was still visibly chuckling.

Puzzled, he looked at Alice, who was triumphantly twirling her wand in her hand.

"Yes?" she inquired sweetly.

He glared at her and mouthed for her to remove the charm. Alice rolled her eyes and uttered the counter curse, giving Jasper's voice back.

"You're no fun," she pouted.

"Whatever," he said, irritated.

"So, what did you bring me over here for?" Alice asked.

Jasper handed her a multi-colored lolli-pop, "Fizzing Whizbees," he explained.

"It's good?"

He laughed, his good mood returning as he nodded, "Yeah. I bet you would enjoy it especially."

Alice gave him a questioning look, "If you say so…" and headed off towards the register, with Jasper in tow.

"Just this?" the lady confirmed as she paid for the candy.

"Yeah," she grinned.

Alice removed the wrapper of the Fizzing Whizbee while standing at the counter with Jasper.

She stared at it for a couple of seconds, intently eying it.

Smirking, Jasper said, "C'mon, it won't bite…or will it?"

The lady saw Alice's dilemma and asked, "You've never had a Fizzing Whizbee?"

Alice shook her head.

The lady beamed, "Well, they're amazing!"

"Okay, then," Alice laughed as she hesitantly licked it. The effect was instantaneous.

Alice squealed happily, "Oh Merlin!" She was floating a good two feet in the air!

Jasper was roaring with laughter as he watched her.

"That's awesome! I'm so tall now! Almost taller than you!" she giggled to Jasper. "I'm gonna get all of them!" she announced, and skipped away back towards the section where the Fizzing Whizbees were located.

Jasper watched her go; and noticing him for the first time, the lady leaned in towards him and whispered slyly, "You two make an adorable couple."

His eyes widened as he stammered, "Wha-? Er- We're not- She's not- I'm not-!" However, despite his protests, he was secretly not that opposed to the idea.

"Ah, I see," the lady said in understanding, "Shy are you? Well, that's fine." She leaned closer towards him, "If it doesn't work out with her; remember, I'm always available," she added with a wink and left.

Jasper was appalled. The lady was what? Seventy? He shook his head and went to find Alice.

"You okay?" Alice asked.

"Just a little freaked out," Jasper replied nonchalantly.

"And why is that?"

"Oh, that old lady at the register decided to hit on me." He informed her of this like it was nothing _that_ unusual.

"Oh my god! Really?" She burst in laughter; however, a small part of her was actually quite angry.

"Of course. I can't say I blame her, though," he smirked.

Alice rolled her eyes. "Whatever. So you're into _older_ women?" Even as she said this, she felt a little hurt, and disturbed as well.

"You know, I'm actually _quite_ into girls my age." He stared intensely at her.

"Um, okay," Alice blinked. "Right. Well, I'll go check these out so wait for me here. It's almost time to meet the others; unless you want to see your admirer again?"

Jasper gave her a mocking smile as she danced away.

She soon returned with a large bag labeled _Honeydukes_. They then quickly made their way outside into the raging cold.

Despite the foul weather, Alice began laughing again, "Poor Jas-"she frowned. She had almost called him by his first name? How had that happened?

Jasper stared at her too before saying, "Look, Alice." Wow. "Why don't we just be friends? And friends don't need to refer to each other by their surnames."

Alice widened her eyes in surprise. "All right… Jasper."

She said it uncertainly, but Jasper loved the way she said his name. She made it sound beautiful. He was then more than a little alarmed at himself after he reflected on his thoughts, though.

She smiled unsurely and took his hand, pulling him back down the way they came from.

"Er- Alice?" he asked.

"Hmm?"

"Where are we going?"

"To meet the others," she stated.

"Well," he laughed, "we're going the wrong way."

* * *

A/N: Sorry for the slow update, but thanks so much for all the encouragement from the last chapter! I hope you enjoyed this and REVIEW please! :)


	9. Eclipse

_**Discovering Hogwarts- Chapter Nine: Eclipse**_

_**--**_

Alice walked down the street in the instructed direction, shocked- although quite happy too. She completely disregarded the frigid weather conditions around her as she was pondering over the events that had just occurred.

She and Hale- no, wait, _Jasper- _were friends! If someone had told her yesterday that she and Jasper would be friends the very next day, she would have ordered them to go eat a hippogriff. But, as an afterthought, she would have recommended an acromantula instead; because she was rather fond of hippogriffs after meeting Buckbeak- or Witherwings- on a visit to Hagrid's.

The point is, she would have never believed it to be possible to be friends with Jasper; except, maybe in her wildest dreams. And, she had imagined that quite a few times, even if she'll deny it ever happened.

"Would you like me to hold that for you?" a velvety voice inquired, dragging Alice from her confused musings.

She looked around to see a smirking Jasper, pointing to the large Honeydukes bag Alice had slung across her arm.

"Oh! Er, sure?" She responded hesitantly as he took the bag from her. "But," she warned- in what she thought was a rather intimidating manner, "you better protect it with your life."

He cocked an eyebrow uncertainly at her.

"Well, it's chocolate!" she clarified as if that single statement was the solution to all the problems in the world.

"Ah, of course," he nodded in serious agreement. With a twinkle of amusement in his eyes he added, "After all, what's more worthy of my life than chocolate?"

Alice glared at him and punched him in the shoulder.

"Ow!" Jasper exclaimed. "I'm sacrificing my life for these chocolates, and this is how you repay me?" he asked in a sad and hurt tone.

"Oh, please," Alice laughed and asked, "Hmmm, what's the costume store called anyways?"

"Y'know, I don't really feel like I deserved to be treated that way, so I don't think I'll walk with you anymore," Jasper announced mischievously.

"But-"However, Alice's retort was never finished, as she let out a loud surprised shriek.

She was no longer standing on the stone path.

The sound of a rather attractive familiar chuckle reached her ears. It seemed to be quite close to her- _very_ close to her.

Alice twisted around and stared at the source of the laughter, staring directly into the eyes of one Head Boy that was currently carrying her.

Vibrant emerald eyes locked with mysterious clear blue ones; neither one of them willing to remove their gaze.

Finally realizing that she had done nothing but stare for the past few minutes, Alice snapped out of her reverie and acknowledged her surroundings.

Her emerald eyes widened in realization and anger as she screamed, "What in the name of Merlin are you doing, Hale! Put me down!"

Jasper grinned wickedly, "We're going to be late meeting up with the others, since you walk too slow," he shot her a half amused-half apologetic look, which she gladly returned with a deadly glare. "Besides, I said I wouldn't walk with you anymore, so this seems to be our only option."

And with that highly perplexing and uninformative explanation, he ran off, carrying a slightly amused Alice in his arms.

Jasper was extremely fast, dashing through the crowds of people that had gathered outside the shops since the rain had stopped.

"Wow, you're really fast," Alice commented as he slowed down to a brisk walk.

Jasper grinned, "Sports."

Alice cocked an eyebrow at him.

"Quidditch," he informed her. His smile spread even wider as her expression still resembled one of utter confusion.

"Really? Didn't know that. What position do you play?" she inquired eagerly.

Jasper laughed, "Well, Gryffindor's playing in a couple of weeks. Maybe you could find out then?" he remarked casually.

A smile danced across Alice's lips, "Maybe."

Jasper just laughed again and rolled his eyes.

After a few more minutes of walking- or being carried-, Alice saw yet another pack of girls glowering menacingly at her. It was probably the fourteenth time that day. "You're gonna get me killed," she hissed to him.

"Oh, yeah? Care to explain?" he asked with a smirk.

"Your fan girls are going to murder me," she explained. Jasper, however, found this quite entertaining.

"It's not funny!" she whispered- or tried to- again. "Last week, a few of them asked me to be a speaker at the 1,946 meeting of the Official Jasper Hale Fan Club," she informed him.

Alice could not help but laugh at the disgusted expression that made its way across Jasper's features.

"They even gave me a business card in case I changed my mind," she added mischievously. "Wanna see?"

Jasper swallowed, "Yeah, you know what? I think I can live without that."

Alice smiled slyly and sighed, "Well, if you say so."

Jasper rolled his eyes at her, "We're here."

She gazed at the shop they were standing in front of. This time, her short height didn't force her to tilt her head all the way back and stare up, because she was in the surprisingly- well, not really- cozy and convenient comfort of Jasper's arms.

The sign that read _Eclipse _in gold, elegant script was practically begging for Alice to go inside!

She gasped and tried jumping down to the ground. Jasper, however, caught her.

He smirked at her and gently set her down.

She flashed him an angelic smile and pulled him through the door of the inviting store.

Alice was met with the sight of paradise. She hadn't gone shopping in almost forever!

"Look who finally decided to show up," remarked a laughing Emmett, walking out from behind a tall mirror. He was followed by Harry, Ron, Hermione, Edward, and Bella.

"Hey, guys!" Alice greeted her friends happily.

Jasper grinned at them, "You all have fun?"

"Definitely," Ron joked, directing his gaze toward Hermione, "because picking out the correct shade and texture for each quill was absolutely enjoyable."

"Oh, _shut up_, Ron," Hermione reprimanded him.

"Well, Emmett almost bought all the stock at Zonko's," Rosalie exclaimed. "The shop owner had to beg him to stop."

They all rolled their eyes at the typical Emmett behavior.

"Edward and Bella were probably off snogging at Madam Puddifoot's," Harry teased.

Bella blushed deeply.

"Merlin! You were!" Ron smirked as Edward simply looked a bit embarrassed.

Laughing, Alice glanced around the enormous store.

Her eyes lit up with excitement as she bounced up and down, staring at the remarkable collection of accessories.

Ron jumped up and down excitedly, imitating her. He gave a high-pitched squeal as he clapped his hands and exclaimed, "Ooohh, shopping!

The others bit their lips to stifle their laughter as Alice narrowed her eyes at him.

"Oh, what a lovely surprise! I didn't know you loved shopping too! But, that's okay, we can be shopping buddies now! Ahh… c'mon I see some great dresses that could just be perfect for you!" Alice declared happily.

"That's awesome. Although, Ron prefers the frillier dress robes, right?" Harry asked innocently.

Emmett's guffaws rang through the store as he recalled a particularly unforgettable memory. He was not as thoughtful as the others, who at least attempted to keep quiet.

Ron flushed scarlet and glared at Harry, who simply shrugged, and Alice, who smiled sweetly.

"So, Alice," Edward said casually, "just a random question here, but do you happen to enjoy shopping?"

"Who does?" Ron muttered in a side conversation to Emmett, Harry, and Jasper. Rosalie and Hermione were busy inspecting some troll masks that, unsurprisingly, looked a good deal nicer than Crabbe and Goyle's faces.

Pretending to have missed Ron's comment, Alice managed to hide her smile as she gasped with overdone shock. "What would ever make you think that?!"

"No idea why girls love shopping so much. They're crazy I tell you!" Emmett informed the other boys with despair in his tone.

"Oh, nothing. After all, enthusiastic bouncing at heights that exceed five feet at the sight of a shop suggests perfectly normal behavior," Edward decided with a grin.

Bella seemed quite terrified at the mention of Alice's love for shopping. Alice had been threatening her that she would get her a whole new wardrobe; even though Bella had pointed out the fact that they wore uniforms most of the time. Alice, however, remained undeterred.

"Don't know what to tell you, mate," Harry said to Ron, Emmett, and Jasper, shaking his head.

Alice laughed completely trying to ignore Harry. Edward was so silly sometimes.

"D'you think I could get off without being forced to get a costume this time?" Jasper asked Harry, Ron, and Emmett hopefully.

"Absolutely not!" Alice yelled, joining in on their conversation for the first time. "You're going to get one or- or else!" she declared in a childish tone.

Jasper smirked, cocking an eyebrow, "Or else?" he questioned mischievously.

Alice pouted, her bright emerald eyes quivering as they widened even more as she gazed at him innocently. Her lower lip began trembling as she asked, "Please."

All Jasper could do was stare hopelessly at her, his eyes transfixed upon her face. He finally stammered, "Er, yeah… su- sure."

Alice beamed.

They were completely unaware that their friends were eyeing this exchange with great interest.

"Right, why don't we look for some costumes and then head to lunch?" Hermione suggested.

They agreed and split up, wandering around in opposite directions throughout the shop.

After nearly half an hour of searching, Alice still did not find any costume that she liked.

As she turned the corner, she ran into Bella.

"Sorry!" both girls apologized in unison.

"It's okay," Alice grinned.

Bella smiled, "Any luck in finding a costume?"

Alice shook her head sadly, "Nope. You?"

"No, I'm terrible at shopping anyways."

"Oh, I have an idea!" Alice exclaimed.

"Hmm?"

"We could pick out costumes for each other!"

Bella looked rather nervous, "Er- Alice, my fashion sense isn't exactly the best…"

"Nonsense," Alice smiled, "I trust you. Let's meet back here in half an hour?"

Bella nodded in agreement.

The nine Gryffindors were currently seated at the New Moon Café. They had just completed shopping for Halloween costumes and decided to get a quick bit to eat before they went back to Hogwarts, because lunch was long over.

"Hmm… so what's good here?" Alice inquired.

Emmett grinned, "Everything."

"Helpful."

"Oh, I try."

Before anyone else could comment, the waitress appeared. She was in her twenties and had bright carrot colored hair that was obviously artificial.

She flipped back a strand of her painfully blinding hair and said a little too eagerly, "Hi, my name is Brianna. I'll be your server tonight. What can I get you guys to drink?"

It didn't escape the girls' notice that she was _only _referring to the _guys_.

"Umm, Brianna?" Ron asked. "It's not nighttime yet. It's only," he consulted Jasper's watch, "3:23 in the afternoon."

"Really?" Brianna replied. "My watch says it's already 7:85 AM! - I mean PM."

They all exchanged glances.

"Er- right. Now that we've gotten that…interesting… conversation out of the way, perhaps we can order?" Edward suggested smoothly.

"Sure!" Brianna exclaimed, smoothing out her shirt as she stared at Edward.

"Ahem," Bella cleared her throat not-so-discreetly.

Brianna looked over at Bella and the girls, appearing as if she had not noticed them there before- which, Alice thought, was probably true.

"Oh! Of course! Hi, my name is Brianna. I'll be your server tonight. What can I get you guys to drink?"

The nine Seventh Years just groaned in frustration.

A/N: I'm so sorry for not updating in such a long time! But, I hope you enjoyed this chapter. As always, any comments and suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Thanks so much, and please REVIEW! ^_^


	10. Pirates

**_Discovering Hogwarts- Chapter Ten: Pirates_**

**_--_**

Alice returned to her room after a long day of classes, sadly prepared to… do more work; because the professors had decided to assign them all a bunch of assignments that just _had _to be completed in order to be admitted to the Halloween Feast, and rumor has it, the surprise ball after.

What was she thinking of when she decided to attend Hogwarts? She must have been crazy…

Her temporary insanity was why she was currently on her bed, buried under piles and piles of books.

But Hermione, Rosalie, and Bella weren't doing too well either. She _thought _Hermione was still sitting at the desk in the corner of the room. Bella was_ probably_ still on her bed, frantically scanning through her notes- or maybe she went to find Edward, she didn't know. And she was almost positive Rose was still sprawled across the floor, because she could hear the furious scribbling of her quill.

She was beyond bored.

Because, trying to write an essay on the 'Goblin Wars' was _not_ fun at all. Alice really wanted to interrupt the silence in the room, but she was scared because she valued her life and was afraid of the reaction she would receive from interrupting a studying Hermione.

According to Ron, it was _not _something she should _ever_ hope to experience.

"I don't think I'm going down for dinner, I still have loads to do," Hermione called out from the corner of the room.

Alice, deciding it may be best if she didn't either as she didn't see her essay writing itself any time soon, responded, "Yeah, me neither."

"Sounds good," Rose agreed. "_Stupid quill! Stop blotting ink all over the place!"_ she added, hissing at her innocent writing tool.

Alice sympathized for the poor quill.

"Okay. I'll go down and tell the Edward and the others not to wait up for us?" Bella suggested.

Alice thought she gave her somewhat of an answer, and Bella most likely took it as a confirmation, since the door closed soon after.

* * *

Awhile later, surprisingly out of the blue, Rosalie asked, "Where's Bella?"

"Umm… didn't she go down half an hour ago to talk to the guys?" Alice reminded her uncertainly.

Because she wasn't sure if she really did hear Bella say that she was going downstairs to find Edward _or_ if it was only because she had read about the goblin king, Belgrok the Third, deceiving his neighboring kingdom by pretending to sign a peace treaty with the reigning monarch Queen Edwina, but really leading his entire army in to conquer the territory instead.

It was all really quite confusing.

"I think so," Hermione nodded. But, no more words were needed as the door opened to a very flushed-looking Bella.

"Oh, there you are," Rosalie said.

"Hey," Bella smiled, "I brought you guys some bread, in case you were hungry."

Alice's eyes lit up. "I love you, Bella!"

She quickly devoured the food and forced herself to return to the wonderful, blood-thirsty life of the most aggressive and successful goblin king in history. Belgrok was actually quite a fascinating fellow.

* * *

Alice stretched out in front of the fire in the Gryffindor common room and leaned her head against a pillow, scanning over her essay.

Not because she fancied not sleeping, but because she didn't want to wake up Bella, Hermione, or Rose. They had all finished their homework, so she came down to the common room as to not wake them up.

The common room had emptied out ages ago, but she liked the silence. Contrary to popular belief, Alice Cullen did enjoy moments of peace and quiet.

As she finished proofreading her essay, she-

"Having fun?" a deep- and surprisingly familiar- voice suddenly shattered the calm surroundings, interrupting her careful evaluation, and nearly scaring her to death.

"AHHH!" Alice screamed and jumped up, unexpectedly crashing into something hard, only to bounce forward. She was involuntarily leaning nearer and nearer towards the ground, when a pair of arms wrapped around her and held her in place.

This, of course, prompted her to scream again.

"Relax, Alice," the same voice whispered softly in her ear. "It's just me."

"Jasper?" she asked, confused.

He chuckled. "You weren't scared, were you?" he asked slightly amusedly.

She rolled her eyes, blinking a couple times. "What are doing up so late?!" she questioned him accusingly, choosing to ignore his remark. She was unconsciously leaning closer towards him as she waited for his answer… until she realized that he was still holding her and what it was that she was actually doing.

She jumped out of his arms faster than Crabbe or Goyle could swallow a cupcake, and whirled around to face him, hoping she wasn't blushing too noticeably.

In her defense, the common room really was quite chilly, and the fireplace didn't help matters at all.

"I could ask you the same question," he smirked.

Alice attempted to give him a pointed look, as her patience was running a little thin at 1:00 in the morning, after a long, dragging day of classes.

He merely laughed. "I didn't eat dinner, so I was gonna get some food."

"Oh," she said, taken aback. But then she realized that food was only available during mealtimes. "Wait. How do you-?"

Jasper grinned. "Are you hungry?"

Alice had decided to answer 'no' until her stomach growled involuntarily. Wonderful.

He chuckled. "C'mon," heading towards the exit and gesturing for her to follow him.

She briefly debated on whether or not to go with him, but ended up following him as the offer of food really was too much to resist. It was no wonder people thought she and Emmett were related. However, she just thought they knew how to enjoy food- and not in the gross Crabbe and Goyle kind of way, either.

"Where are we going?" Alice asked.

"It's a surprise," Jasper smirked.

"Isn't the Head Boy worried about getting caught?" She teased him after he had led her down through six floors and counting.

Under the dim lighting, she caught a glimpse of him rolling his eyes. "Don't worry," he assured her half-mockingly, leading her down a flight of stony steps that led to a brightly lit corridor decorated with cheerful paintings that were mainly of food.

"Are you feeling all right?" she asked him, now genuinely concerned for his mental welfare as he stopped in front of a large painting of a silver fruit bowl and tickled the huge green pear inside.

"Honestly, do you want to go up to the Hospi-"

Her eyes widened to the size of saucers when the fruit begin to squirm and giggle, suddenly turning into a green door handle. He seized the handle and pulled the door open, gently poking her inside.

"Merlin," she breathed. She looked around, gazing upon the enormous, high-ceilinged room, with mounds of glittering brass pots and pans heaped around the stone walls, and a great big fireplace at the other end. "Is this… are… are we in the _kitchens_?!"

"Well, you know, that's quite a possibility," he reasoned with a grin as they sat down at one of the long wooden tables.

"Oh, shut up," she said cheerfully, too excited to actually infuse any form of menace into her tone.

Immediately, three house-elves rush towards them, curtsying and bowing.

"Hey, Dobby, Eggo, Jim," Jasper greeted them with a smile.

The house-elves beamed at him, delighted that he remembered their names.

"Can we get sir and madam anything?" Eggo asked eagerly.

"Yeah, could you guys fix us some dinner, please? We kinda missed it."

"Of course, Mr. Hale! We shall be right back!" they replied, happily bowing and rushing off to acquire the necessary items that would prevent Jasper and Alice's starvation.

Alice cocked an eyebrow at Jasper. "This is amazing! Do you come here often?"

He smiled. "Yeah, Harry, Ron, and I found it in fourth year."

The house-elves soon returned with a fully stocked cart of tea, pumpkin juice, roast beef, pork chops, bacon, boiled potatoes, salad, and treacle tart.

Neither of them bothered to waste a single second on conversation, and started to shovel down food as if they hadn't eaten in years.

Although, Alice did feel slightly apologetic as she briefly glimpsed a couple of nearby house-elves watching them with a mixture of awe, horror, and fascination.

"That was great as always, Dobby," Jasper high-fived the house-elf with a pencil shaped nose; bat-like ears; and enormous, green, tennis-ball-shaped eyes when they had finished eating.

"Thank you sir! We has been trying to improve the treacle tart ever since the incident with Mr. Emmett," he said proudly.

Alice sat up a little straighter. Did that have to do with why Emmett suddenly developed an irrational fear of treacle tart?

"Ah," Jasper laughed. "Good job, guys. I'm sure Em will be glad to hear that he can finally eat the treacle tart now."

The house-elves grinned happily, as if their lives' goal had just been fulfilled.

"Thank you so much!" Alice smiled. "I'm pretty sure you guys just saved my life."

"It was our pleasure, madam. Any friend of Mr. Hale is a friend of ours!" Dobby replied gleefully. "Sir, "he added in a smaller voice, "a fews of us is not so sure about Lesson 18," he said, his voice full of disappointment.

"Don't worry about it. We'll go over it in the next class," Jasper assured him, much to Alice's bewilderment.

As they prepared to leave, many of the surrounding house-elves crowded in, offering them snacks and sweets to take back upstairs. They accepted them quite happily.

"What was that about?" Alice asked as soon as soon as they left the kitchens.

"What was what about?" Jasper replied, confused.

She rolled her eyes. "You know, when you guys were talking about the lessons."

"Oh, that," he nodded casually. "Harry, Ron, Emmett, Edward, and I come down here and teach them stuff whenever we have time, so they can sort of get a basic education. I dunno, it was Edward's idea at first, but we all went with it. Emmett's even teaching them how to sing and act."

Alice raised an eyebrow and laughed. "Emmett can sing?"

Jasper started laughing as well, "You should hear him." Then he added leaned in closer to her and added in an undertone, "It gives me nightmares."

Alice giggled, much to her surprise, as she was never one to giggle.

"But wow, that really is so nice of you guys!" she grinned, ignoring the strange occurrence.

He shrugged. "It's cool. They're pretty good students."

"Do you think I could help?" she asked hopefully.

"Sure," he grinned. "I know they would have way more fun if you were there."

Alice blushed, but was confused at what that meant. She was silently grateful that they were now walking through the more dimly lit corridors.

They quickly reached Gryffindor Tower and Jasper whispered the password to the Fat Lady to allow them entrance into the common room.

"It's already 2:15," Alice groaned as she checked the clock. "I'm never gonna get up tomorrow!"

He smiled. "You'd better get some sleep, then."

"Yeah," she yawned. "Night."

"Good night," he called up after her as she dashed up the stairs, a bright smile on her face.

* * *

"Happy Halloween, Alice!" Seamus Finnegan yelled as she passed him in the common room.

"You too!" she grinned, tossing a Chocolate Frog at him.

"Thanks!"

She hurried up to her dorm, and was just about to turn the handle when the door opened, allowing a frantic Rosalie to haul her inside.

"Whoa! What in Merlin's name is going on?" she asked, surveying the room in wonder; because even though it was once-upon-a-time, a normal room shared by four seemingly ordinary girls; looking at it now, it was almost impossible to believe that there wasn't ever a time when it wasn't a professional dressing room.

She followed Rose to the opposite end of the room, still utterly confused and took extra care to avoid the vast assortment of sweets littering the floor- after all, it _was_ Halloween.

She laughed when she realized what Rose was doing. Sitting in the two chairs in front of the mirrors and vanities, were Bella and Hermione, and they did _not_ look happy.

"Hey, girls!" Alice chirped excitedly. "What's up?"

Hermione and Bella shot her identical murderous glares.

"Where have you been?!" Rosalie asked agitatedly.

Alice groaned. "Trelawney was trying to convince me to attend the International Seer Convention. She kept going on and on about the great potential I had and how she was just _dying_ to show me off to her old Seer friends."

Hermione laughed.

"What'd you tell her?" Bella asked.

"Nothing," Alice shrugged, grabbing a bottle of Sleekeazy's Hair Potion and began applying it to Hermione's hair. "Apparently when Harry came up to talk to Jasper about some Quidditch thing, Trelawney saw him and just about exploded with all the horrible details of his future. I don't even think she realized we left."

"I've always said that woman was mental," Hermione scoffed.

Alice nodded her head in fervent agreement. That was why she had never disagreed with Hermione on the subject of mental people.

"Too true," Rosalie nodded a little distractedly, as she was busy curling Bella's hair. "Alice, hurry up Sleekeazy-ing Hermione's hair. You need to start getting ready soon; there isn't much time left."

" 'Kay," Alice said nervously.

She always took _forever_ to get ready.

* * *

After they had all been declared perfect by one another, Hermione, Bella, Rosalie, and Alice happily headed down to the Great Hall to meet Edward, Emmett, Jasper, Ron, and Harry.

Alice smiled at Jasper and Harry as the other couples greeted each other. The three of them decided to go in first.

The Great Hall was lavishly decorated with brilliant floating pumpkins and small containers of sweets that floated through the air.

However, rather than the usual House tables that filled the Hall, there were plenty of smaller tables set up that each sat ten instead.

"You excited?" Jasper asked laughingly.

Alice looked at him. He looked extremely handsome with his golden hair in casual disarray and a few stray strands falling into his crystal blue eyes. For his costume, he wore a white puffy-sleeved shirt with the first few buttons undone, a leather vest, brown breeches, and leather boots.

He was a pirate.

Alice had always liked pirates.

…

……

But, erm, in a completely platonic way as a friend, of course.

Right. Alice thought Jasper was a great friend. A _great_ friend.

"Um… yeah! I'm-"Alice attempted to respond.

"Harry!" a shrill voice rang out from behind them. "I see you!"

Harry's expression was one of pure terror. "Hide me!"

Jasper and Alice began laughing uncontrollably.

"Sorry, mate. Is that Romilda Vane?" Jasper grinned as Alice dragged the both of them toward the refreshment table

"Yeah," Harry frowned.

"You think she's moved on to bigger plots than love potions?" Jasper sniggered.

"Oooohhh… love potions?" Alice asked, interested now.

Harry groaned.

"Oh yeah. Last year, this girl, Romilda Vane, was completely obsessed with him and tried to give him a love potion," Jasper explained.

Alice laughed, "Aww… someone's got a crush on Harry!"

A nearby girl scowled at her.

"Okay… a lot of someones have a crush on Harry!" Alice corrected, rolling her eyes.

Apparently, this was quite true. Harry was dressed nonchalantly in his Quidditch robes, with his normally messy hair looking particularly windblown. Even though Alice was sure this was how he looked regularly after Quidditch practices or games, it didn't stop every girl that they walked by from winking and grinning widely at him.

"Our little Harry has grown up so much," Jasper said mock-proudly, dabbing his eyes. "I mean, before, it was just Moaning Myrtle who fancied him; but now, there are actually real humans who like him!"

"Ha-ha," Harry rolled his eyes. "You guys are hilarious," he said sarcastically.

"Of course I am!" a familiar voice boomed.

Alice turned around, smiling at the sight of Emmett with Rosalie, Edward, Bella, Ron and Hermione.

"Hey guys!" Hermione smiled.

"Aww, how cute! You're embracing your inner pixie, girl!" Emmett exclaimed - in an extremely fake and high-pitched tone that was a perfect imitation of some of the Hufflepuff and Slytherin girls - referring to the beautiful blue pixie costume that Bella had selected for Alice.

"You know it!" Alice squealed, high-fiving Emmett, who apparently decided to be a martial artist. He looked more intimidating than ever in his traditional white uniform and black belt.

"So, having fun?" Rose asked, adjusting the sea shells on top of her long wavy hair. She looked great dressed as a sparkly mermaid.

Jasper shrugged in response to his sister's question.

"We should go dance," Edward suggested, sending a glance at Bella since Professor Dumbledore really did arrange for a ball to go along with the feast.

Bella's eyes widened in horror as Ron cheered. "Yeah, Bella! C'mon!"

Harry leaned in closer to the group and added in a whisper, "You know, the other day, Edward was laughing at how you couldn't dance."

"What?!" Edward yelled, terrified. "What are you talking about? Don't believe him, Bella!"

"Yeah," Emmett said seriously, although it was evident he was trying not to laugh. "You're not gonna prove him right, are you Bella?" Jasper added.

Bella raised an eyebrow, "Well…" She grabbed Edward and started for the dance floor.

Edward turned around behind her and grinned, mouthing a 'thanks' to them.

"Good job, team," Emmett nodded approvingly. "Now… who wants to dance?!"

* * *

A/N: Sorry for not updating, but I hope you enjoyed this chapter and review! :)


	11. Schemes

**_Discovering Hogwarts- Chapter Eleven: Schemes_**

**_--_**

The Halloween festivities were definitely progressing along spectacularly, and were enjoyed by everyone - well, almost everyone.

Slipping discreetly out of the Great Hall was a gloomy Draco Malfoy with two… somewhat challenged and unattractively mannish girls.

Alice, having the unfortunate displeasure of glimpsing Malfoy and his companions, narrowed her eyes. No doubt Malfoy was up to something, as she was sure she had never seen those girls around Hogwarts before; and they were also unsettlingly familiar. What's more, Alice knew that there was no way that the all-mighty Draco Malfoy would _ever_ surround himself with anyone less than perfect.

So what was Malfoy doing then? Well, Alice was going to find out.

She twirled effortlessly through the mass of dancing bodies and laughing faces, determined to reach the exit on the other side of the room.

"Alice!"

Annoyed at the disruption, she turned around to face whoever was demanding for her attention. "What?" she snapped.

"Oh!" she gasped, blushing. It was the Headmaster. "Hello, Professor Dumbledore! Er, how's your Halloween been, sir?" she attempted sheepishly.

"Excellent," he grinned wisely, his eyes twinkling behind his half-moon spectacles and apparently unperturbed about Alice's previous behavior. "Chocolate ghosts!" said Dumbledore enthusiastically, offering the candy to her as several nearby ghosts looked around curiously.

Alice gasped as she saw Dumbledore's hand. It was completely blackened and shriveled and looked as though his flesh had been burned away.

"Oh, I saw these at Honeydukes. Thanks, sir," Alice forced smile and ate the chocolate.

"They're delicious, aren't they?" Dumbledore said. "Well, I must be going. Good to talk to you, Alice."

"You too, sir," Alice said as he left. She was worried and confused now. She was positive that his hand hadn't been like that before, had it? And what happened to it? It looked… dead.

With the new revelation of Dumbledore's hand, Alice forgot about Malfoy. She wasn't sure what to do now.

Feeling thirsty, she finally decided to head over to the refreshment table. As she drank her Butterbeer, she saw a scowling Hermione standing by herself.

"What's wrong?" Alice asked concernedly.

"Oh, hi Alice. It's nothing," she laughed unconvincingly. After a brief pause, she exclaimed dramatically, "It's just, Ron's being an idiot!"

"Huh. What did he do?"

"Well, Emmett was joking around and somehow brought up me snogging my old boyfriend. And then Ron got mad! Can you believe him? I dated Viktor three _years_ ago!" she fumed.

"You're kidding! He got mad at _that_?!" Alice said disbelievingly.

"I know!"

"That _is_ pretty idiotic," Alice agreed. Again, this was why she never disagreed with Hermione on the subject of mental or idiotic people.

"So, who was Viktor?" Alice asked curiously as she had briefly forgotten about Malfoy and Dumbledore, and was utterly bored.

"Oh," Hermione rolled her eyes. "Viktor Krum," she laughed. "He was a nice-"

"Oh Merlin! You dated Viktor Krum?!? Wow! He's one of the best seekers in the world! That is so awesome!" Alice yelled excitedly.

"Thanks," Hermione chuckled. "You know what? I think I'm gonna go find Ron and give him a piece of my mind."

Alice laughed. "Okay, have fun!"

"I'll see you later. Thanks for listening," she beamed, walking toward the table that they had originally grabbed.

"No problem!"

Alice was bored again. She sighed; now she had to find something to do. She settled on finding her other friends and -

"Hey, Alice."

Alice looked up to see Harry examining her curiously.

"Oh, hi Harry. What are you up to?" she asked.

"Er, well," he appeared uncomfortable. "I have a problem."

"Yeah…?" she encouraged.

"You see, well. Hey, you wanna dance?" he asked suddenly.

"Huh? Sure…?" she said curiously.

Alice swayed to the Weird Sisters' new hit single, waiting for Harry to explain his dilemma.

"Okay," Harry began," girls are crazy," he stated plainly.

"What?" Alice raised her eyebrows.

"Never mind," he said quickly, waving his hand dismissively. "So, I went over to Ron's house this summer."

Alice stared at him confusedly.

"And, well, there was this copy of _Witch Weekly_ on the table – it was probably Fleur's, Bill's fiancé – but, I was really bored, so I read it."

"Okay…"

"Anyways, my life sucks," he said conclusively.

"Because you read an issue of _Witch Weekly_?" she asked bewilderedly. "What are you going on about?"

"That probably didn't make much since, did it?" Harry acknowledged sheepishly.

Alice laughed. "Absolutely not."

"Sorry. So, I… erm… I… well… you see… I… you know…" he chuckled nervously.

She offered him an irritated glare.

"I fancy Ginny. A lot," he blurted out.

"Oh!" Alice yelled excitedly. "You do? That's great!"

"Yeah, it's wonderful," Harry agreed sarcastically, "Especially since she's dating that Michael Corner git."

"Ahh…" she said softly. "Sorry."

"It's all right, though. I have a plan."

"Uh huh, what kind of plan?" she asked suspiciously.

"Well, remember that _Witch Weekly_ thing I was talking about earlier?"

She nodded impatiently. "How could I forget?"

"Right, so, one of the articles said that if you fancied someone who was currently in a relationship, you had to make them jealous."

"So you're genius plan is to make her jealous?"

He laughed in a scared tone. "Yeah, and I, er, kinda need someone to be my girlfriend," he finished, looking at her pleadingly.

Alice's eyes widened to the size of saucers. "Your _girlfriend_?" she yelled, horrified.

Harry stared at her hopefully.

"Are you serious? Come _on._ There must be a better way of getting her to like you. And I'm sure jealousy is not the answer," she reasoned.

"_Please, _Alice_?_ She's never gonna notice me! Besides, do you have a better plan?"

"Just talk to her or something!" she suggested.

"I've tried! You think I haven't? But she has 'Michael,'" he said acidly as his face fell, defeated.

Alice felt really bad. Harry was her friend and he looked miserable. Maybe… well, she supposed it wouldn't hurt if it was just to help him and Ginny, would it?

"Oh… well… fine…" she sighed exasperatedly.

"Really? Thanks, Alice!" Harry hugged her uncharacteristically.

"Uh-huh…" she smiled amusedly. "Hang on. Just what does 'being your girlfriend' entail?"

"Umm, I'm not really sure. Probably what Edward, Bella, Emmett, Rose, Ron, and Hermione, do?" he suggested uncertainly.

Alice rolled her eyes. "Yeah, whatever. I can tell them, right?"

He shrugged. "I don't care. Just don't tell other people, though."

"Okay…"

"Hmm, do you wanna dance for real this time?" Harry grinned, relieved that his plan to win Ginny was in motion.

Alice laughed, "All right."

Harry placed his hands on her waist as she reached up to put her hands on his shoulders, and they danced, enjoying the music.

Jasper stood a few feet away, shocked and furious.

* * *

A/N: Sorry this is a bit short, but I hope you guys liked it! Thanks so much to everyone who reviewed, alerted, and favorited! Oh, and please review! :)


	12. Poison

**__**

Discovering Hogwarts- Chapter Twelve: Poison

**_--_**

Jasper Hale slammed the goblet that he was gripping tightly onto the closest table, the bright liquid swishing roughly over the edge. It was done in an attempt to prevent anything drastic from occurring – like throwing a full cup of punch at a particular 'Chosen One.' But that probably didn't help much as he could still feel his hand clenching and unclenching on its own accord.

He couldn't believe it.

Well, he should. He had just witnessed it with his own two eyes. The rumors that Maria Gonzales had been shoving in his face had been true. There _was_ something going on between Harry and Alice.

But he didn't want to believe it. He'd thought – well, it didn't matter _what_ he'd thought, since Alice was apparently all in love with Harry now.

He didn't care, though. Not anymore anyways.

"Hey, Jasper, you're not going to believe – Are you all right?" a concerned voice asked him.

He looked up, a little startled to see a slightly blotchy-eyed Ginny, traces of anger still present on her face.

"Hey, kid," he shrugged. "I've been better, you?" He and Ginny had always been friends, as he had often stayed over at Ron's house during the summer.

"Livid, actually. I found Michael _snogging_ _Parvati Patil!_" she seethed.

Jasper had the strangest urge to laugh. Not because Ginny's boyfriend cheating on her was funny, but because of the irony of the whole situation. "That's a bit like what happened to me. I'm sorry, though."

Ginny nodded. "He was getting on my nerves anyway. But he didn't have to go off and _snog_ someone while I was right there!"

"Yeah," he muttered.

A musical laugh carried over to where Jasper and Ginny were talking. Jasper didn't have to look to see what was going on, though.

"Oh!" Ginny exclaimed. "I didn't know Harry and Alice were together. Did you?"

Jasper gave a noncommittal grunt, his eyes hard.

"I suppose they do make a… nice couple," Ginny said slightly hesitatingly.

"Yes, lovely," he said sarcastically. "Adorable," he continued. "Wonderful," he was on a roll now, unable to stop. "Fantastic. In fact, let's give them a medal!"

Ginny glanced at him strangely, but was still a bit oblivious to the intentions of his little outburst. "Anyways, Harry's pretty cool, isn't he? I mean, what with his – "

"Yes! He's brilliant! I just _adore_ his bloody glasses," Jasper gushed sarcastically. "His scar is just so _breathtaking. _And, his _eyes_! Oh, and I just melt a little bit every time I gaze inside of them!" he finished irately, mimicking some of the comments made by random girls.

A couple of nearby people threw him questionable looks. He winced as he heard _her_ laugh again.

Startled, Ginny stared at him amusedly. "Jasper, are you jealous?"

* * *

"_Really?_"

Alice was having a rather enjoyable time conversing with Harry.

"Yeah. So Krum asked her out for the Yule Ball, you know? And Ron and I were all desperate 'cause we didn't think any girls would say yes to us –"

"That seems a little hard to believe now, seeing as those girls practically worship –"

**"AHHHHH!!!!!!"**

Bewildered, Alice glanced at Harry, who looked just as confused. The Great Hall had turned deathly silent.

"HELP!!! Someone get help! Anyone. Please!"

Alice felt all the warmth drain away from her body as she realized who was yelling.

It sounded an awful lot like… Emmett.

Without wasting another second, she and Harry both ran off to the direction of Emmett's voice.

Alice followed Harry, pushing through the crowd of people that were most likely surrounding Emmett and Rosalie – she knew she was being rude, but she didn't care. Something was wrong.

The first thing she saw was Professor McGonagall levitating a girl from the marble floor. The girl's blonde hair was messily strewn across her face and –

It _couldn't_ be.

The girl looked like…

Rosalie.

She vaguely noticed Emmett following Professor McGonagall and Rosalie to the Hospital Wing. He seemed to be shaking, entirely helpless.

"Rose!" Alice cried instinctively.

No response.

Alice felt herself trembling as well. "What – what's wrong?" she asked no one in particular, just hoping that someone – anyone – would answer her.

"Calm down, Miss Cullen."

Alice turned to see Professor Dumbledore. The headmaster was examining the scene of the incident, a frown etched deeply upon his face.

What did he mean, _calm down?_ She just saw her best friend being levitated to the Hospital Wing because she was unconscious, and he told her to _calm down?_

Harry was apparently much better at this than she was. "What – what happened, sir?"

"I believe she was poisoned," Professor Dumbledore murmured as he swished around the contents of a gold goblet. "Does anyone know if Miss Hale was drinking from this?"

"Yes sir, she was," Edward confirmed in a low tone.

Alice whipped her head towards Edward, and saw Bella. She appeared to be on the verge of tears, and buried herself in Edward's shirt.

Alice felt more like hexing someone than crying, so she focused her attention back on the headmaster.

Professor Dumbledore muttered a spell under his breath, his wand aimed at the goblet. The dark red liquid shot straight up to about five feet in the air, and turned into a color of shocking dark green and fluorescent. Several cries emerged from the students as they watched.

"Yes," Professor Dumbledore nodded, "It was poison." His face was a mask of cold anger as he addressed the students, "Prefects and Heads, bring everyone back to their houses immediately. Teachers, follow me."

The Hall erupted into a frenzy of frightened tears, frantic yells, and confused discussions. Alice saw Hermione and Jasper trying to organize the students.

Jasper looked ready to kill someone.

She gasped. Shouldn't he be with Rosalie? Was _he_ all right?

Alice felt horrible, she had completely forgotten about him.

She immediately wanted to go over to him. Almost as if he had read her mind, he looked at her briefly, meeting her gaze icily before turning away.

Alice was puzzled, so she decided to assist Ron and Bella in getting the younger students back to Gryffindor Tower.

She would find Jasper later.

* * *

Alice woke up the next morning, feeling confused. She looked around the room and saw that Bella and Hermione were still asleep, but Rosalie's bed was empty.

_Huh?_

Alice peeked at the clock. It was only nine o'clock in the morning, and it was a Saturday.

Rosalie Hale was never out of bed before eleven on a Saturday, Alice was well aware of that.

But then, what was she doing up so –

The events of the Halloween dance the night before immediately came rushing back to her.

Rosalie had been poisoned.

_Poisoned._

Alice still couldn't believe it.

She remembered waiting outside the Hospital Wing for hours until Madam Pomfrey had informed them that Rosalie would be okay. Then they had been ordered back to their rooms, since they were told she wouldn't be waking up for awhile – a few days, maybe.

It didn't matter. Alice was going back to check on her best friend, regardless.

She rushed through her morning routine and pulled on a warm sweater. Grabbing Rosalie's favorite (secret) teddy bear, she headed downstairs.

* * *

Jasper stood outside of the locked double doors that led to the Hospital Wing. It seemed to be such an ominous sight, especially since Rosalie was inside. His sister. His twin.

It all seemed so surreal. He couldn't think of anyone who would want to hurt Rosalie. Well, a few girls were jealous of her, sure, but he honestly didn't think that their resentment would lead to this kind of behavior.

He heard light footsteps coming closer and closer towards him, and he glanced around to find Alice standing next to him, staring at the door as well. He knew that she and his sister had become really close during the past couple of months. Rosalie had probably become closer to Alice than seven years knowing Bella.

He wanted to talk to her, but then he remembered her with Harry.

Someone part of his brain – the more logical part, he assumed – knew that he probably had no right to be mad at her or Harry.

But still.

Had she been leading him on? One day she was flirting with him and the next she was getting close with Harry.

It really had hurt him, as much as he didn't want to admit it. He thought she was different from all those other girls, he honestly did.

But maybe he was wrong.

"Do you think she's all right?" Alice asked softly.

Trying to grasp the last remains of logic from his internal conversation, he forced out, "I hope." He could tell she was about to cry. The tears in her eyes sparkled brighter and brighter.

All of a sudden, Jasper felt her grip his hand. Startled, he studied her questioningly. But she was looking straight ahead.

"Who would do something like this?" she whispered.

He stared at their hands, entwined. He wanted to let go, but he just couldn't. No matter how angry or disappointed he was with her, he couldn't. Not when she looked like that – so vulnerable and scared.

He was saved from an answer as the doors opened. Madame Pomfrey stepped out, looking exhausted but satisfied.

"Is Rosalie –?"

She nodded. "Yes, we managed to remove all the poison from her body. It was extremely potent and deadly. A rare kind that I've never seen before. We're lucky that Professor Snape knew what to do. She almost didn't make it."

Alice choked back a sob.

"You may go in and see her now."

Jasper gave her a quiet "Thank you," and followed Alice inside the Hospital Wing.

* * *

Alice bravely entered the room and walked to Rosalie's bed. She still looked very pale, but at least there was a faint color in her face. Alice smiled slightly and placed the teddy bear on her pillow. Then she looked at Jasper.

He appeared to be immensely relieved that Rosalie would be okay; however she was still perplexed about his behavior. She didn't understand why he was so angry at _her _last night, and wouldn't even spare her a glance this morning but allowed her to hold his hand when she was frightened.

It was all so confusing to her.

She was determined to find out what was really going on.

"Are you okay?"

He didn't answer. Not even a nod or a shrug.

"Why were you so angry last night?" she tried again, raising her voice a little.

To no avail.

"What the bloody hell is wrong with you!?!" she almost yelled. "Why won't you answer me?!"

He looked at her like she was crazy. "My sister was poisoned," he enunciated slowly and carefully.

"No," she snapped firmly. "I mean, why were you angry at _me_?"

Jasper stared at her disbelievingly for a moment before laughing humorlessly.

Alice frowned at him. She was frustrated, confused, and now angry.

"Why do you care?!" he finally exploded. "Just go find your boyfriend!"

* * *

A/N: Sorry for the slow update, again. I'm not so sure I liked this chapter, but tell me what you guys thought! Thanks to everyone who reviewed. The feedback is really appreciated!


	13. Library Secrets

**_Discovering Hogwarts- Chapter Thirteen: Library Secrets_**

**_--_**

_"Why do you care?!" Jasper finally exploded. "Just go find your boyfriend!"_

Alice stared at the idiot in front of her, not fully comprehending his words at first. When she finally processed his ridiculous words, she had a strange urge to laugh; yet, she couldn't help but feel irritated at his rash assumptions that obviously caused his cold behavior towards her.

"Excuse me?" she eventually decided upon, her eyebrows raised and her voice carrying a hint of surprise and anger. "What do you mean?"

"What?" Jasper snapped harshly. "Did you suddenly become incapable of understanding simple words?"

Under normal circumstances, Alice would have most likely hexed the person who said that to her, but she found Jasper's behavior to be too intriguing. Still, though, he should _not _have said that, not when he didn't even try to understand what was going on.

Jasper sighed, running his hand through his blonde hair. "Sorry. Whatever. Harry's cool, go look for him. Yeah, whatever." He shut his eyes in frustration.

Alice watched him with an amused smile. "All right. If that's what you want, then. Although, that's pretty unnecessary since we're not dating," Alice said lightly. "But, I mean, if it's what you want, I guess I _could_ –"

Jasper's eyes snapped wide open. "You're _not_?!" he half-yelled, shocked. "But – but, I thought – I saw you guys last night at the Halloween… you're not?"

Alice shook her head. "No, we're not. Well I guess we're 'supposed' to be. I'm just helping him win over Ginny."

Jasper looked confused. "Okaaay. So, having a girlfriend makes another girl that you fancy, fancy you?

"According to Harry's _Witch_ _Weekly_ info," she shrugged.

"Huh. So you guys are _not_ really going out, then?" Jasper asked for confirmation.

"Yeah."

"Wait, yes you are or yes you aren't?" Jasper asked carefully.

Alice rolled her eyes. "Yes we are not, you prick."

Jasper cocked an eyebrow challengingly and grinned. "Did you just call me a prick, Cullen?"

"Well, my parents raised me to always tell the truth! I had to," she nodded solemnly. "I mean, if you think about it, I was actually doing you a favor."

Jasper opened his mouth to respond, but all Alice heard was a very feminine giggle.

Well, that wasn't right.

She whirled around, facing the only occupied bed in the Hospital Wing, her puzzled expression changing to ecstatic.

"ROSALIE!" Alice exclaimed as she saw her best friend was awake. "Merlin, are you all right? We were so worried about you! Are you sure you feel okay? Do want me to get anything for you? I could -"

Rosalie propped herself up on her pillow, smiling at her and her brother as he nearly-ran towards the bed.

Jasper opened his mouth to no doubt give the same speech Alice was currently spieling, but he was cut off again by Rosalie.

"Don't," she warned him. "Honestly, guys I'm feeling great. But thanks for all your concern. In fact, I've actually been up for awhile now, just enjoying the show," she grinned.

"Why do you always interrupt me while I'm talking?" Jasper whined. "Actually," he rephrased his question, "why do _girls_," he cast Alice a meaningful look, "always have the annoying habit of interrupting me?"

Rosalie rolled her eyes. "Well, that's painfully simple to answer. It's because our words are more important than yours, little bro! I thought you would've learned that by now," she teased him.

However, Alice wasn't really paying attention to Jasper's question. "Wait, you were awake this entire time?" she asked.

"Pretty much," Rosalie shrugged.

"What?! I was practically bawling because I thought you might not wake up, and you were just 'enjoying the show'?!" Alice ranted.

A guilty look flashed through Rosalie's eyes and she sighed. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to worry you guys so much, I was just really bored, and Madame Pomfrey wouldn't quit bothering me whenever I woke up, so I pretended to be asleep. I feel perfectly fine, though."

Jasper decided to take over from here, seeing as Alice was not doing so well with her self-control – although, of course he knew she only meant for the best for his sister. "Rose, you were _poisoned_," he reminded her seriously. "That's not something to mess around about."

"Yeah, I - I know," she muttered quietly, almost to herself.

Alice's expression softened and she perched herself on the bottom of the bed. "It's all right. We're here for you, Rosalie. We'll find out what happened. It'll be all right."

Jasper sat closely next to his twin and Rosalie nodded gratefully at the two of them, clutching her old bear. "Thanks, you guys. You're the best."

They enjoyed this peaceful moment – but only for a moment – until the large doors swung open to allow Emmett, Edward, Bella, Harry, Ron, and Hermione to enter.

* * *

A week later, life at Hogwarts had returned relatively back to normal. More essays were assigned, most assignments to be completed, and more tests to study for.

The students had been shocked and a bit scared when they heard of Rosalie's near-death poisoning at first, but they soon forgot about it. Only Alice, Jasper, Harry, Ron, Hermione, Emmett, Edward, and Bella were truly concerned that they had had no news on the situation yet.

But, the more astonishing thing was when people started realizing that two Gryffindors were dating:

Harry Potter and Alice Cullen.

Some were flabbergasted, some were envious, some were indifferent, and some were even heartbroken. Harry Potter – 'The Boy Who Lived' but never had a girlfriend – was no longer available.

Alice rolled her eyes at the gossip and whispers flying around her as she sat down for breakfast, trying to ignore them. Because while she was no longer surprised about it all, it did take some time getting used to. After all, this was _the_ Harry Potter they were talking about, she supposed.

On the plus side, she had spoken to Ginny yesterday, and the youngest Weasley did appear to have a hard time being friendly towards her. It had to mean something, so with any luck, their plan was working, even if it _was_ quite a ridiculous one.

"Hey, Potter's girlfriend," Emmett greeted her, mimicking the other students who had granted her the endearing name.

It was quite hilarious when they told the rest of their friends about her and Harry fake-dating, because the first thing Emmett said to Harry was: "I'm warning you, boy. If you do anything to hurt her – well, let's just say, _I know where you live_."

Alice grinned, her friends were such dorks. But she loved them.

"Hey, Rosalie's puppy," she gave him her sweetest smile, rolling her eyes. That statement really wasn't untrue, though, seeing as Emmett would practically snog a Venomous Tentacula if Rosalie asked him to these days. It was sweet to see him so worried about her, even if she had made a full recovery and returned to her normal self.

"Yeah, yeah," he waved a hand dismissively, and proceeded to inhale his breakfast.

* * *

After classes were over for the day, Alice walked with Hermione back up to Gryffindor Tower. They were discussing the latest challenging project they were assigned when a group of giggling girls came up to them.

Alice wasn't familiar with all of them, but she recognized Maria Gonzales and Victoria Savage.

"Hey, Hermione!" the platinum blonde in the middle beamed at her as Hermione was the Head Girl.

Hermione merely gave her a brief nod of acknowledgment. They were the same girls whose goal in life seemed to be stalking Edward Cullen, Jasper Hale, Emmett McCarty, Harry Potter, and Ron Weasley.

"And, Alice, is it?" the girl turned to her. "You're dating _our_ Harry?"

"It would appear that way." Alice resisted the urge to roll her eyes.

"I'm Lauren Mallory," she motioned to herself. "So, we were wondering," she motioned to the girls behind her, "does this mean that you're into incest?"

Alice raised an eyebrow in disbelief. "_Excuse me_? What are you talking about?"

"Well, isn't it obvious? You're definitely his sister! I mean, you have black hair and green eyes just like he does," she explained very matter-of-factly.

Alice shared a glance with Hermione, who seemed dumbfounded as well. She finally took a deep breath and decided to enlighten Lauren. "Just because we share two of the same traits, it doesn't mean that we're related." Just to be safe, she added, "Because we're not."

Lauren stared at her as if she was missing something very obvious. "Duh! You changed your last name so you guys could be together!"

Alice didn't even want to respond to that. She couldn't. In fact, she was about to burst into laughter any moment now.

No one said anything else, creating an awkward silence. But when Lauren glared at her "friends," they broke in a drone of forced laughter.

Hermione sighed. "Right, this was fun, girls. But I have a lot of work to do. Have fun," she gave them a small wave. "Come on, Alice," she said, pulling her towards the staircase.

As soon as the other girls were out of earshot, they dissolved into a fit of giggles.

* * *

To keep up the appearance of being a couple, Harry and Alice studied together in the library. It really was difficult trying to pretend to be interested in one another.

Harry leaned back in his chair at the library table with five books open, trying to do his Transfiguration homework.

Just then, a familiar voice could be heard making its way towards them.

"Please? Please, tell me?"

That sounded a lot like –

"Ginny, it's just that I – well, I don't know, because everything is so weird right now, you know?"

Harry immediately threw his arm around Alice right as Ginny and most-likely Luna turned the corner.

He began grinning stupidly.

Alice saw Ginny out of the corner of her eye and repressed the urge to roll her eyes at Harry; instead, she took it as her cue to giggle.

"Oh, really!?" Alice gushed as if they were right in the middle of a fascination conversation.

"Yeah," Harry smiled, catching up to her. "You wouldn't believe what a pain it is when Edward, Emmett, and Jasper fight."

Ginny and Luna sat down two tables away from them. Alice groaned inwardly. This meant that they had to continue this nonsense because Harry was convinced it was working.

"Yeah, I can imagine," Alice laughed.

Harry pulled her closer, and whispered in her ear in response to her frustrated expression, "Sorry. I know she's watching."

"She is," Alice confirmed. "Are you sure this –"

"Potter! Cullen!" a sharp voice barked.

Harry and Alice snapped their heads up, startled to find Madame Pince, the extremely strict librarian, glaring at them.

"That kind of behavior is not tolerated here!" she continued strongly in a loud voice. "You should know better than to do that in the library." Her voice changed into a longing, dream-like quality, "The only people allowed to act like that in here are my hunky Argus and I -"

Harry and Alice gaped at her, their mouths hanging open, as were the rest of the students in that particular section of the library.

"Um, very well. Carry on, everyone," Madame Pince cleared her throat. "Uh – I have some business to attend to."

And with that she quickly dashed out, leaving some very stunned – and mildly disgusted – Hogwarts students behind her.

* * *

A/N: Thanks to everyone who read and reviewed the last chapter. I really hope people who read this can leave me a review and tell me how I'm doing. Hope this chapter was all right, and feedback is always appreciated!


	14. Hugs

**_Discovering Hogwarts - Chapter Fourteen: Hugs_**

**_--_**

The air in the History of Magic class was dull and peaceful – except for Professor Binn's constant droning about the Goblin Wars. It was probably the perfect environment to take a nap – a theory Emmett, and even Bella, did not hesitate to test out. Based on the even breathing and lovely snores drifting serenely from the desks on her left, Alice guessed they were receiving positive results.

Alice had long since fixed her gaze upon Binns at the front of the classroom and had a sheet of parchment and quill prepared for note-taking. But, of course, she was far from paying attention to the lecture, and her hand had a mind of its own – probably mindlessly doodling. Alice had always found those scribbles to be interesting. It always intrigued her to see what her subconscious was thinking about.

Sitting there, it seemed time passed extra slowly. She wished Jasper was there - _curse McGonagall for transferring him out of the class!_ She wondered what he was doing at the moment. But no, she was being ridiculous; she would see him soon for their D.A.D.A. project anyways.

"You know," Ron piped up suddenly. "I don't understand the bloody point of even taking this class anymore. I doubt knowing how many times Bigtoe the Fourteenth successfully decapitated his enemies with his pinkie will really help us in life."

Alice snorted, struggling to keep quiet. "Of course it will. Aren't you devoting your life to studying . . . the way of the Goblin like I am?"

Ron chortled, "Well, for some reason, I'm choosing not to follow that career path. At least, McGonagall wasn't too encouraging about that idea during Career Week. Can't imagine why."

Alice sighed with overdone sadness.

"Yeah, but, I mean, there are so many cooler things to do than to sit here," he said.

"For example . . .?"

"Er, I don't know, we could be playing Quidditch or something. Oh! You know what's fun? Turning cats into different colors. Emmett and I once turned Croockshanks rainbow-colored and covered with fluorescent green polka-dots and he went all mental – that guy is unnaturally smart – and tried to get my wand. Almost clawed my eyes out, actually."

Alice rolled her eyes at Ron's behavior. "Well, it's no wonder Crookshanks doesn't like you two."

"He does too! We just have a . . . unique relationship." He paused, as if just remembering something important. "Hey, you won't tell Hermione about this, right?" he chuckled nervously.

"Yeah, yeah. Just for blackmail material, then?" she said nonchalantly.

Ron looked horrified. "No! I–" he seemed to be at a loss for words. So he did the only logical thing – he changed the subject. "Ah, you're such a skilled artist, Alice. The best, I reckon," he complimented her richly as he snatched her 'note-taking parchment' away from her.

"Give that back!" she protested. She didn't even know what she had drawn.

"Yeah, that's a very beautiful . . . monkey-dwarf-mermaid. Excellent job. And that blood-thirsty butterfly? Genius."

"– I did not –!"

"Ooh," he gave a surprised intake of breath. "Wow," he said, dragging on the syllables of the word and chuckling. He raised an entertained eyebrow, "This is really interesting."

"_What_?" Alice snapped, craning her neck to see what Ron was so fascinated about.

"Well," Ron started. "We have a heart here, and," he appeared to be reading it: "A – L – I – C – E," he looked up at her, grinning, "– H – A – L. Seems incomplete, but I'm sure we can make a pretty good guess."

Alice's eyes were huge. There was no way she wrote _that_! She – she – she _only_ had simply platonic feelings for Jasper. There was no logical explanation as to why she had written her name in conjunction with his last name. She blamed it on the lack of sleep (it was perfectly fine to disregard the fact that she had gotten almost nine hours of sleep the previous night).

"What do you mean?" She decided the innocence and ignorance act would be best. "I didn't even know what I was writing. Probably something like – um . . ."

"Like . . .?"

"I – I _was going_ _to write_:_ '_Alice halted . . . a large shipment of Crumple-Horned Snorkacks'?" she attempted feebly.

"Crumple-Horned – _what_?"

"Snorkacks. They're quite intriguing, actually. According to Luna –"

"Hey! Don't change the subject!"

Alice cursed.

Ron laughed with glee. "Now _I_ have blackmail material."

Alice narrowed her eyes. "You wouldn't," she warned him, despite knowing that Ron wouldn't do such a thing.

Ron continued laughing, "You know, you guys are way too obvious anyways. Just hurry up and snog alrea –"

"Shut up, Ron!" she hissed.

At last, Binns dismissed them with a: "Doesn't time fly when you're having fun?" His tone was remarkably more enthusiastic than his students.

Alice inhaled a large breath of fresh air as soon as they ran out of Binns' classroom. The crowded corridor on the First floor was like freedom.

" 'Kay, guys. I'll see you later. I have to go the library to–"Alice was in the middle of speaking to Ron, Emmett, and Bella.

"Late for an appointment with Madam Pince to compare notes about Filch's hot body?" Emmett taunted, raising his eyebrows suggestively.

Ron choked on the bottle of pumpkin juice he was drinking. "Filch's . . . hot . . . body?"

Alice glared at Ron, mouthing the word: 'Hermione.' All the happiness on his face immediately drained away as he hung his head in guilt and sadness – or horror, she wasn't sure -, taking on an expression fit for a funeral.

But then, it all faded away and was replaced with a triumphant look as he mouthed, 'Crumple-Horned Snorkacks'.

She scowled, fuming. "I was." Her frown was replaced by a suspiciously angelic smile, "But she told me that she only did those things with one special student: Emmett McCarty." She paused and grinned. "Is that the reason why you're always disappearing these days, Emmett?"

Ron choked on his pumpkin juice again and Bella remarked with a scandalous tone, "Is there something you need to tell us? Or something we should tell Rosalie?"

Emmett's face held a look of mock-surprise and betrayal. "That woman! I _knew_ Pince wasn't to be trusted. But – but, all those therapy sessions, the secrets I confided in her, the plans for world domination, my secret enmity with that strange purple dinosaur . . ." he shuddered and fake-sobbed into his hands.

Alice grinned gleefully. "Yep! I'll know all your deepest, darkest secrets. We're best friends now."

Emmett stuck his tongue childishly at her and narrowed his eyes menacingly.

Alice laughed, "All right. I'm going to go, then. See you guys later," she smiled, waving at them and heading off in the direction of the library. She didn't want to be late to meet Jasper for the project.

But, as she turned the corner, she didn't miss the encouraging and knowing wink that Ron sent, either.

Whatever. Ron was a git. He had no clue what he was talking about.

-

-

Alice walked quickly through the tables and shelves towards the back of the library where she knew the vampire books were located. When she passed the shelves that housed the romance novels, she saw Madam Pince humming; the librarian was practically glowing with joy. Alice was not at all interested in finding out the reason for this behavior. She walked faster.

As expected, Alice found Jasper sitting against the wall with a thick book and several sheets of parchment scattered around him. His golden hair fell into his eyes as his skimmed each page. Alice felt a strange urge to brush it out of his face.

She froze, incredulous at the ideas her thoughts contained; but she couldn't say she didn't want to explore them a bit further. However, she quickly pushed the thought away before she could be too tempted. She was determined that it was just the result of a long, boring day of classes.

"Hi there," she grinned brightly at him. Inexplicably, no matter how boring her day was, seeing Jasper just made it so much better.

"Hey," he said, his tone devoid of any emotion whatsoever.

Alice stood there for a second. Was something wrong?

"Are you okay?" she asked concernedly.

"Yeah . . ." he trailed off. "Yeah, I'm - no."

No? What in Merlin's name was going on? Alice sat down gently next to Jasper, "Okay, well what happened?"

He sighed. "The world is so messed up right now. With the Death Eaters everywhere and – and – Voldemort . . ."

"Yeah," she murmured. Harry had talked about it a lot. But she still didn't know what Jasper was getting at.

"My aunt was found dead today. My uncle is missing. The Dark Mark was hanging over their house. It was pure luck that my little cousin was visiting his grandparents when it happened."

Alice gasped. She had no idea and now she felt horrible for making him say it. She didn't know what to say.

She slipped her arms around his torso in a tight hug. "I'm so sorry."

Jasper didn't move. He exhaled deeply and shook his head as if that would clear up all his thoughts. "Ben is only four. I babysat him for most of the summer. He's a really good kid. And my aunt and uncle, they were awesome people. They didn't deserve any of this . . ."

Alice closed her eyes. She felt like crying. Even though his uncle was only reported as missing, she knew that there was no hope for him. Things like this happened so frequently these days – why was the world so messed up? She wished she could do something – anything – to help Jasper. He cared so much for them… and what about Rosalie? She couldn't imagine how her best friend was feeling. Rosalie was extremely protective of those she loved, and she hadn't seen her all day . . .

Alice felt one of Jasper's arms around her. "Thank you," he said.

She lifted her head up in surprise, "For what?"

"For listening . . . and just being here."

Alice rested her head against his shoulder and her lips curved. "Well of course. I mean, you _are _almost my friend," she teased him.

Jasper cracked a small grin, "Don't I feel special."

"You should," she smiled. None of them moved, even though the purpose of coming here was really to work on their project; for some reason, this just felt right to Alice.

* * *

A/N: Thanks for reading - if anyone still does. :) I know I haven't updated in forever, and I'm really sorry about that. I'm hoping to do better now! This chapter was short, but I promise the next won't take nearly as long! Hope to see a review telling me how it went. :D


	15. Katana

**_Discovering Hogwarts - Chapter Fifteen: Katana_**

"Hmm, according to this, some vampires actually consume animal blood instead of the traditional human blood," Jasper remarked, paging through a worn leather-bound book.

They had decided to get as much work done on their assignment as possible since Jasper had a practice to get to. It was the last practice before the big match against Slytherin, so everyone's nerves were on edge.

"Really?" Alice quirked an eyebrow. "So, they're like vegetarians or something?" She was happy he was feeling a bit better, but she still needed to talk to Harry, and maybe her parents.

Jasper chuckled, "Yeah. But they're pretty rare. The only recorded group of 'vegetarian' vampires is the Denali Clan in Canada."

"Well, at least I know I'll be semi-safe when I visit Canada."

He grinned, "Unless they have a quick change of heart. Might be hard to stick with animals when they have you there." He leaned in towards her, his eyes shining mischievously, "You're pretty irresistible, you know."

Alice's eyes widened at the quick change of mood. She was sure she blushed almost as much as Bella these days. "Yeah?" she found herself murmuring.

"Definitely." Then he grinned, and the atmosphere evaporated immediately. His tone switched to teasing, "At least, I'm sure you are to starved vampires."

Alice rolled her eyes, forced her heart rate to return to normal, and resisted the urge to strangle him. One of these days, if he didn't kill her with his . . . behavior first, she was going to kill him. "I'm sure."

Jasper nodded approvingly. "So, are you coming tomorrow?"

"Of course! Like I'd miss the final match of the season." She bit her lip and her expression turned thoughtful, "Then again, _you _will be playing . . . but, I guess I could force myself to go. . ."

"How considerate of you."

". . . for Draco Malfoy," she finished sweetly.

"What, and join his little gang of troll henchmen?" Jasper snorted. "Hey, have you seen his two new recruits? Those mannish girls?"

Alice nodded slowly, her thoughts flashing back to the night of the Halloween Ball . . . when she saw Malfoy sneaking out with them. With all that had happened with Harry and then Rosalie, she'd forgotten about them. But then, Malfoy _wasn't _there when Rosalie was poisoned.

In fact, he appeared to be in a great rush to get as far away from the festivities as possible. Alice had first just attributed it to Malfoy's standoffish and holier-than-thou personality, but what if he was hiding to avoid getting caught?

It was a bit of a far stretch, but then again, Draco Malfoy was not known for taking in injured puppies and nursing them back to health. Plus, Harry _had_ said they spotted Malfoy in Knockturn Alley before school started. Who knew what kinds of twisted Dark tricks he had up his disgustingly overpriced sleeves?

She was prepared to spill all her new realizations to Jasper, but stopped. While Rosalie was her best friend, this was his _sister_ they were talking about here. Alice didn't know if her theory was solid yet, and she couldn't count on Jasper not acting rashly or telling Emmett if she told him, not after all that had happened today. Then it definitely wouldn't be pretty. No, she'd be better off talking with Harry about this first. They'd get to the bottom of this.

But Alice realized Jasper was still waiting for a response. She smiled smugly. "Have you noticed they look an awfully lot like Crabbe and Goyle?" Alice remarked before really thinking about her words. But it was a true observation.

Jasper laughed. "I've actually been thinking that too."

"I know! And besides, I never see Crabbe and Goyle hanging out with Malfoy anymore, at least not when the girls were there." In fact, Alice had hardly seen them at all lately.

Well, no, that wasn't entirely true. Just yesterday morning, Goyle had forcefully pried an extremely rare—and from what Alice had been told, sought after—artfully shriveled _Minced Left Bat's Ear Drum_ from Snape's adoring hands, and shoved it down his own throat.

Alice had never seen the Potions Master so infuriated and revolted at the same time before. In fact, his anger had driven him to the point of unsheathing an extremely well-polished Japanese katana—Alice was rather alarmed when she saw it reflect light as there were only four candles in the room. She wondered at the methods Snape may have resorted to in order to obtain one.

Anyhow, Snape had had the katana pointed at Goyle's throat—he did wield it quite skillfully, if Alice did say so herself; maybe he got lessons?—when Dumbledore stepped in to borrow some potion materials Alice was sure he already had. (Harry confirmed this suspicion later.) As Dumbledore made his way out, she swore she saw him wink and toss one of Fred and George's orange Puking Pastilles at Goyle . . . but not the purple one that allowed the user to stop vomiting.

Alice shuddered; she did _not_ want to be around for that. Dumbledore was creepily sadistic at times. She made a mental note not to get on his bad side. Besides, sometimes, the timing of the headmaster's interventions was just downright uncanny. Maybe she'd have liked to see how far Snape was willing to go for his Ear Drum. Although she wasn't optimistic of the state the Ear Drum would be in after a grueling trek halfway through Goyle's digestive tract.

Of course, thinking of this only prompted her to want to vomit. The mental images would scar her for life. She wondered if Dumbledore had anymore Weasley's Wizard Wheezes products.

But this got her thinking of Fred and George.

She'd see them around here and there sometimes, but never for long. And did they even attend classes her anyways? After all, weren't they two years older than Ron? She was really confused, but every time she made a move to question about it, her friends would quickly but subtly change the subject. And she had never really thought about it until now. What was going on?

She shook her head, hoping it would lift the fog off certain things. No such luck.

"Are you all right? Jasper asked, concerned.

Alice mentally kicked herself. Jasper was the one who'd just lost his aunt and uncle, and here _she _was, making him worry.

She smiled, hoping it was convincing. "Yeah." She glanced at her watch and then groaned inwardly as she realized the time. Jasper was almost late for practice. "You'd better go. We wouldn't want Harry murdering anyone, would we?"

"Nah," Jasper agreed. "We wouldn't want you to spend all your time crying about me," he remarked casually as he packed up.

"And," Alice sputtered, "What makes you think I would waste all my time doing that?" she asked as he started walking towards the front of the library.

He turned around to look at her, grinning. "Because you think I'm irresistible too," he said with a wink.

Flabbergasted, Alice heard him laughing as he walked away. She shook her head and couldn't help but smile. He was just too confusing, and . . . she kind of liked it.

But really, at this rate, she _would_ kill him. Soon. Or at least snog him to death. She hadn't decided yet. It was a work-in-progress.

Quickly, Alice finished skimming the book in her hands and jotted down a few notes. They had gotten quite a bit done today, and she was happy. But she was still worried about how Rosalie would be like after learning about her aunt and uncle. She was tough and Emmett was probably with her, but Alice wanted to make sure Rosalie was okay just in case.

* * *

Alice saw Emmett sitting in the common room when she entered Gryffindor Tower. He had pointed her upstairs, eyes filled with concern. Alice's heart sank and she practically ran up the stairs.

She found Rosalie in their dorm humming softly to herself as she organized her jewelry box. No one else was in the room, so she knocked on the doorframe before entering, so as to not startle Rosalie. "Hey," she smiled softly.

Rosalie glanced up, took one look at her, and sighed. "You heard?" she asked, her voice breaking a little.

"I'm sorry."

Rosalie nodded and sat down on her bed. Alice joined her. "I—everything is so dark and scary. So many good people are being hurt, and they don't deserve any of it. I wish I could do something to help. Did you hear what Harry was saying? About the horcruxes? It's so sick."

A couple of days ago at dinner, Harry had told them about Dumbledore's theory to Voldemort's secret for evading death: horcruxes. They allowed one to store a bit of his/her _soul_ in any object so that even if one part of a person was killed, the person wouldn't really die because of the other pieces still in existence. It took a truly heinous crime to allow such Dark Magic to occur, and Voldemort attained this at the simple cost of . . . murder.

It was disgusting.

Alice mentally shook herself. Right now, she had to be strong for her best friend.

"I know," she said, hugging Rosalie. "But, there are still a lot of good people out there. We just have to stick together."

Rosalie smiled a little. "And kick Voldemort's flabby arse."

Alice grinned. "Of course. What else are we going to spend our free time doing?"

* * *

The chilly wind blew wildly as Alice climbed the Gryffindor side of the Quidditch stadium with Rosalie, Bella, Hermione, and Edward. Definitely not ideal Quidditch conditions.

It was the big day of the final match between Gryffindor and Slytherin for the House Cup, and the stands were already packed. Alice was relieved when they finally found a decent spot.

Hermione groaned, "Did you see how nervous Ron looked?"

"He'll be fine," Alice reassured her. She'd learned that Ron always had issues before a match, and Hermione always freaked out about him. It was sweet.

"Actually, I'm kind of worried Emmett's going to smash the bludger in Malfoy's face. He seemed pretty serious about it," Bella said.

Rosalie brightened. "Hopefully, he can do it with reasonable justification."

"That shouldn't be too hard," Edward snorted.

Both teams entered the field to tumultuous applause. Alice craned her neck to see Harry forcefully shaking hands with Malfoy, Slytherin's captain—of course only because of the generous donation Lucius Malfoy had coincidentally given to the Slytherin Quidditch team. She was surprised their hands were still intact as they let go.

Madam Hooch motioned for them to get ready and they all mounted their brooms. On her whistle, the 14 players rose in the air. The game had started.

"They're off!" Dean Thomas roared excitedly into the magical megaphone to provide the game's commentary. "And it's Gryffindor in possession. Jasper Hale, heading for the goal, dodges a bludger from Goyle and—YES! HE SCORES! TEN-ZERO TO GRYFFINDOR!"

Alice smiled. Jasper was a Chaser. She remembered the day when he suggested she attend a game to figure out his position on the team.

She continued to listen intently to Dean's commentary and glued her eyes to the game. They were all so skilled and fast—even the Slytherins, she had to admit. But, still, she was confident Gryffindor was better. They had to be, after all the near-death practices that Harry had drilled them through.

"Gryffindor in possession, no, Slytherin in possession—no!—Gryffindor in possession! Cormac McLaggen with the quaffle. He's—WHAT THE HELL?"

Nott, a Slytherin Chaser, had swerved in front of McLaggen; but instead of grabbing the quaffle, he punched McLaggen in the head. McLaggen wobbled backwards and let go of the quaffle. Nott grabbed it and headed off for the goal, but McLaggen couldn't keep his balance. He fell off his broom and was falling fast towards the ground at—Jasper zoomed forward and caught McLaggen, just as Nott scored.

"—BLOODY MORONS! THAT WAS COMPLETELY UNCALLED FOR—" Dean was yelling. Next to him, McGonagall was raising her fists in agreement.

Madam Hooch blew her whistle and got McLaggen to the medics. The game resumed as Demelza Robbins made the penalty for Gryffindor.

Alice was awed. The game was so captivating and exciting and terrifying. She watched as Ron made five straight saves after he let five go in. She saw Emmett and Jack Sloper determinedly pelt bludger after bludger towards the Slytherins. Jasper, Demelza, and McLaggen were scoring brilliantly, despite the Slytherins' dirty tricks. Harry was flying around the edge of the pitch, carefully scoping for the snitch.

Suddenly, she saw Harry dive towards the ground—towards a gleam of gold. Malfoy was hot in pursuit, though, and navigated through the air almost as easily as Harry did. Harry was in the lead, but Malfoy was gaining. The score was 120-90 to Gryffindor. They still needed the snitch.

Somehow, Malfoy managed to pull back Harry's broom and aim a kick at Harry's head. Harry barely evaded it and pushed forward. Malfoy was forced to let go since he was off balance. Alice could still see the glimmering, and Harry threw himself forward, both hands off the broom, his arm reaching for the—

"YES! POTTER CATCHES THE SNITCH! THE FINAL SCORE IS 270-90! GRYFFINDOR WINS THE HOUSE CUP!"

Alice cheered joyfully along with the rest of the stadium—minus the Slytherin crowd, of course.

"Come on!" Rosalie shouted across the noise, motioning for Alice to follow them down to the pitch.

Everyone was crowding around the Gryffindor team, hugging them and clapping them proudly on their backs. Harry was ecstatic as Professor Dumbledore handed him the House Cup. Ron and Emmett lifted him up on their shoulders.

Alice spotted Jasper in the mass of people, and ran towards him. He had been incredible out there.

"Congratulations!" she yelled.

As soon as he saw her, he pulled her in for a hug, lifting her off the ground.

Alice, beyond surprised but honestly overjoyed, laughed. "What are you doing?" she attempted to demand, although the effect was spoiled by her giggling.

She stared at him. His face was flushed and his hair was incredibly messy and his blue eyes were shining—it made it unbelievably difficult for Alice to attempt to ignore the fluttering sensation in her stomach.

"So you decided to come," he smirked.

"It took a lot of effort," Alice informed him, deciding to hide the fact that there was no way she wouldn't have been there. It was only a minor detail.

"Oh, well aren't I lucky," he said, grinning.

Alice nodded. "Of course you are," she said, her lips curving. He was still holding her in the air.

* * *

Late the next morning at breakfast—actually it was more like brunch—Alice was busy simultaneously spreading Nutella onto her wheat toast and participating in a heated debate with Emmett over some random story when Harry rushed in.

"Where've you been, Harry?" Alice asked in concern.

"Slow down there, mate," Jasper chuckled, snatching the last breakfast muffin from Ron's hands and tossing it towards Harry, who caught it easily. "We haven't seen you all morning."

"Oi, watch it, Hale," Ron mock-glared at Jasper.

"Oh, here. Have mine," Hermione rolled her eyes and handed her boyfriend the highly sought after breakfast item. Rosalie laughed.

"What's up, Harry?" Edward asked.

"Yeah, are you okay?" Bella frowned.

"You look horrible," Rosalie told him, worry evident in her tone.

Now that Alice studied him closely, she realized that Harry _did_ look exhausted.

"I've been gone all morning," Harry said, downing the entire contents of Alice's orange juice; she was too concerned to reprimand him. "Dumbledore needed my help to hire a new staff member."

"What? Why? _Who?_" Hermione asked impatiently.

"Horace Slughorn."

* * *

A/N: I know I'm terrible! Super sorry for the long wait, but I hope people are still interested in this fic and willing to drop a review with their thoughts. It'd be greatly appreciated. I'm not going to make any promises about the next update ('cause the last time I did, the results were entirely pathetic), but I'm not abandoning this and besides, summer break _is_ coming around soon so I should definitely have more time. Thanks for reading!

Oh, and the Quidditch season doesn't end quite so soon (more like in the end of the year) so that bit is inaccurate.


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